Four in Southwest Florida arrested for voter fraud as part of statewide operation

LEE COUNTY, Fla. (WINK) — State officials announced the arrests of 20 people charged with voter fraud from the 2024 election, including four in Southwest Florida.

State Attorney General James Uthmeier announced the charges as Florida began receiving its first overseas and military ballots for the upcoming election. More than 11 million Floridians voted in 2024, but a small number now face criminal charges accused of fraud.

“Florida will not allow anyone to steal the vote of Americans at the ballot box,” Uthmeier said at Palm Beach State College on Thursday. “These defendants swore they were qualified electors, cast ballots in our elections, and later confirmed they were never eligible to vote."

16 of the arrested individuals are non-citizens, according to the governor's office. Four of them are convicted felons who voted while on probation. In 2018, Florida voters allowed felons to reclaim their voting rights after completing their sentence. Felons convicted of murder or a sexual offense are ineligible. 

How common is this?

Indera DeMine, a Fort Myers immigration attorney, said it's very rare for legal permanent residents to become a registered voter. Green card holders can stay in the U.S. indefinitely. But they cannot vote or serve on juries, DeMine said. 

"I've been practicing in Southwest Florida for about 14 years," DeMine said. "And I don't run into folks that are voting illegally. It's just not, I would say, a big practice in in the immigrant community because the ramifications are so difficult to get over."

DeMine said green card holder can be placed in removal or deportation proceedings for falsely claiming to be a U.S. citizen. DeMine said she's dealt with fewer than five permanent residents who got registered to vote. She said it can happen inadvertently when signing up for a drivers license or selective service. 

Cases involving non-citizens are typically handled during normal voter list maintenance using state and federal databases said Gaby Aguirre, communications director for the Lee County Supervisor of Elections. 

The elections office has to follow a legally-mandated process before removing anyone from the voter rolls, Aguirre said. That includes a written letter to the voter that allows them to refute the claim. Aguirre said the office removed 130 non-citizens from the voter rolls this year. 

Southwest Florida cases

Arrest reports for two of the Southwest Florida defendants suggest they were unaware a crime had been committed. 

62-year-old James Hollingsworth registered to vote while applying for a Florida drivers license in 2021, an arrest report said. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services records show Hollingsworth is a Canadian national who obtained lawful permanent status on Oct. 29, 1967. 

Hollingsworth lives in DeSoto County and voted by mail in the 2024 primary and general elections, the arrest report said. 

In December of 2025, the DeSoto County Supervisor of Elections Office sent Hollingsworth a citizenship acknowledgement form. It said the office received information from the U.S. State Department that he wasn't a citizen. Instead of filling out the form, Hollingsworth sent an email to the elections office: 

"My name is James Mark Hollingsworth and I'm emailing you in regards to letter that was sent to me on not being able to vote in Florida because I'm not a citizen of this great country," the email said. "The fact is I am permanent resident and with that right I've been voting in the state of Florida since I moved here four years ago. As stated in the letter sent, if I can't vote as a permanent resident I'd like to apply for citizenship of the USA."

A Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) agent interviewed Hollingsworth in August. Hollingsworth told the agent he was a convicted felon who was trying to get exonerated, according to the arrest report. Hollingsworth said he previously voted in New Jersey. 

24-year-old Astrid Quintana of Fort Myers Shores completed a voter registration application on Aug. 19, 2024, according to an arrest report. Quintana checked the box that affirmed she is a U.S. citizen. 

Elections office records show Quintana voted in-person on Nov. 5, 2024. In February, the Lee County Supervisor of Elections Office sent her a citizenship acknowledgement form. The office said it received information from the U.S. State Department that she is not a citizen. Quintana filled out the form and said she agreed with the information, the arrest report said. 

Agents from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and FBI interviewed Quintana in July. Quintana told agents she had not voted since receiving the notice, the arrest report said. 

"Quintana was asked why she voted," the arrest report said. "She stated she thought she was eligible to vote because she held a Permanent Resident card."

Quintana pleaded not guilty, according to Lee County court records. 

Here is a list of the Southwest Florida residents arrested:

Kadian Amai Johnson, 29, of Lehigh Acres: A Jamaican national and lawful permanent resident since April 22, 2018. She registered to vote on Sept. 30, 2024, the attorney general's office said, falsely affirming citizenship. Johnson voted in person on Nov. 5, 2024. She later signed a Citizenship Acknowledgement Form admitting she is not a United States citizen, the attorney general's office said. She is charged with Unqualified Noncitizen Electors Willfully Voting and False Swearing. Johnson pleaded not guilty, according to Lee County court records. 

Manon M. Raux, 62, of Naples: A Canadian national and lawful permanent resident since Aug. 16, 1991. She registered to vote on Sept. 18, 2024, the attorney general's office said, falsely affirming citizenship. Raux voted early in person on Oct. 29, 2024. She later signed a form admitting she is ineligible to register to vote, the attorney general's office said. She is charged with Unqualified Noncitizen Electors Willfully Voting and False Swearing.

James Mark Hollingsworth, 62, of DeSoto County: A Canadian national and lawful permanent resident since Oct. 29, 1967. He registered through the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles in 2021 and voted by mail in both the 2024 Primary and 2024 General Elections. After receiving a non-citizen notice, he emailed the Supervisor of Elections acknowledging he is a permanent resident and stating he had been voting in Florida. He is charged with two counts of Unqualified Noncitizen Electors Willfully Voting and two counts of False Swearing.

Astrid Navarrete Quintana, 24, of Fort Myers Shores: A Mexican national and lawful permanent resident since March 31, 2023. She registered to vote on Aug. 19, 2024, the attorney general's office said, falsely affirming she was a United States citizen. Quintana voted in person on Nov. 5, 2024. She later signed a Citizenship Acknowledgement Form admitting she is not a United States citizen, the attorney general's office said. She is charged with Unqualified Noncitizen Electors Willfully Voting and False Swearing.

WINK News reached out to all four people from Southwest Florida who were arrested, but did not immediately hear back. 

What are local elections offices saying?

The Collier County Supervisor of Elections Office said it administers voter registrations that are verified by the state. 

"We work with the Office of Election Crimes & Security during active investigations providing information on voter registration and voting history when someone is suspected of committing voter fraud," said Communications Director Trish Robertson in an email. "Although voter fraud is rare, every allegation is taken seriously as we continue to ensure the integrity of the elections process with our partners at the local, state and federal levels."

“Ensuring election integrity and that only US citizens vote in our elections is of the utmost importance," Lee County Elections Supervisor Jenna Persons-Mulicka said in a statement. "We are constantly reviewing the integrity of our voter rolls to ensure only eligible persons are registered.”

Mulicka championed several election-related measures, including Florida’s version of the SAVE Act. HB 991 requires Florida voters to prove U.S. citizenship with a birth certificate, passport, or REAL ID driver’s license. New voter registrations are checked against Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicle records. It also eliminates the use of student ID’s and retirement center ID’s at the polls. 

WINK News reached out to the DeSoto County Supervisor of Elections Office but did not immediately hear back.