FIRST ON FOX: An illegal immigrant from Africa who has allegedly voted in every federal election since 2008 has been arrested, Fox News Digital has learned, as congressional lawmakers fiercely debate a proposal to strengthen election integrity laws. 

Mahady Sacko, a Mauritanian citizen, has been charged with voter fraud in Philadelphia, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said Monday. 

“This criminal illegal alien committed a felony by voting in federal elections dating back to 2008. Illegal aliens should NOT be electing American leaders,” DHS Deputy Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said. “Our elections belong to American citizens, not foreign citizens. Congress must pass the SAVE America Act immediately to secure our elections. The Senate must pass the SAVE America Act.” 

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Sacko, 50, entered the U.S. in March 1998 in Miami, and was ordered to be removed from the country by an immigration judge in 2000, according to a federal criminal complaint reviewed by Fox News Digital. 

He appealed this decision, but the Board of Immigration Appeals dismissed his appeal and affirmed the removal order on Nov. 14, 2002. Despite this order, Sacko did not depart the U.S., authorities said. 

He was arrested by ICE in 2007, but was not deported because he didn’t have a passport from Mauritania and the agency was unable to obtain one for him, federal prosecutors said. As a result, he was placed on supervision and required to regularly report to ICE offices, which he complied with. 

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In May 2025, investigators obtained voting records for Philadelphia County from the Philadelphia City Commissioners (PCCO) and the Pennsylvania Department of State (DOS) via a subpoena.

Sacko registered to vote in 2005, and falsely stated on several occasions that he was a U.S. citizen, authorities allege. 

The voting records showed that he cast ballots in several federal elections, including during the general elections in 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020, and 2024. In addition, he voted in the 2016 and 2020 primary elections, prosecutors said. 

He voted in person for every election, except for the 2020 primary, in which he voted by mail, the complaint states. 

The court documents feature several paper voter registration documents that Sacko allegedly filled out in which he provided his name, address, social security number, address, date of birth and affirmed that he was a U.S. citizen, prosecutors said. 

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The Trump administration and Republicans have pushed for lawmakers to pass the SAVE America Act, which would tighten voter registration and identification requirements to cast ballots in elections, namely proof of American citizenship to vote. 

Many Democrats contend the law would disenfranchise vulnerable populations from voting, citing the burden of getting documents needed for an ID, while supporters of the bill note that the vast majority of people use photo ID for everyday tasks.