FBI Raids Voter Registration Nonprofit in Ohio
NEWS & RESEARCH
In June 2026, FBI agents raided the Cleveland office of the Ohio Organizing Collaborative (OOC), a nonprofit that helps people of color register to vote, which signed up more than 100,000 Ohioans in 2024. Federal agents seized computers and other materials, and more than 100 officers visited the homes of individuals associated with the organization, demanding to question residents. FBI agents had a warrant for the office raid (not for the home visits), but the DOJ has not disclosed what evidence supports the investigation. OOC board member Prentiss Haney said the tactics amounted to harassment and intimidation of the organization's workers, and Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb said, "Encouraging eligible citizens to register to vote is not wrongdoing. Community engagement is not wrongdoing. Civil engagement is not wrongdoing." Many speculate the raid is part of the administration's broader push against alleged voter fraud, as Trump claims that noncitizens and dead people are casting ballots for Democrats. The raid came about a month after a top official in acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's office directed prosecutors to prioritize voter-fraud cases, and ahead of the November midterm elections, in which Ohio is expected to be a swing state.
SOURCES: New York Times | Washington Post | PBS | The Guardian | NBC | Democracy Docket
ANALYSIS & OPINION
US Rep. Shontel Brown called the raids "an unprecedented attack on democracy," saying, "This appears to be part of a systematic effort by Trump and Kash Patel's FBI to attack our elections and perpetuate more myths of voter fraud—all to undermine and challenge any election result that Trump does not agree with." Other members of Congress, local leaders, and democracy advocates agreed, saying that the operation was meant to intimidate civil rights leaders and prevent Ohioans from registering to vote and exercising their right to participate in democracy. The Brennan Center for Justice said, "It is an egregious abuse of law enforcement for political ends, and it fits a pattern of federal inquiries targeting voting infrastructure ahead of the midterm elections."
SOURCES: Ohio Capital Journal | The Guardian | Democracy Docket
HOW TO FIX IT
Federal action:
Pass a bill to codify DOJ's Election Sensitivities policy, which bars prosecutors from timing investigations to affect an election but has no clearly defined window for when that protection kicks in—leaving it open to abuse.
Pass legislation to codify the FBI's Sensitive Investigative Matter (SIM) policy, which requires extra approval before investigating political organizations. It’s currently just an internal policy, and a 2019 audit found 747 violations in 18 months.
Pressure the FBI to respond to Rep. Shontel Brown's congressional letter, co-signed by four other Ohio representatives, demanding that the agency produce the search warrant and affidavit and explain whether the DOJ's internal election-year investigation policies were followed.
Pass the Protecting Our Democracy Act (PODA), which contains the Security from Political Interference in Justice Act (originally introduced as a standalone bill). This legislation would require the White House and DOJ to keep an ongoing record of their communications in order to maintain transparency and accountability and “prevent the executive from eroding DOJ's independence through political interference”—necessary oversight given the increasingly politicized nature of the DOJ and FBI.
Pass the Inspector General Access Act, which would empower the DOJ's Inspector General (IG) to investigate professional misconduct by attorneys. The DOJ—which includes the FBI—is currently the only federal department whose IG lacks this power. Such legislation would permit the IG to investigate the DOJ leadership that has been accused, in cases like this one, of weaponizing law enforcement for political ends.
Litigation:
The OOC could file a lawsuit arguing that the FBI’s investigation violates anti-intimidation protections under Section 11(b) of the Voting Rights Act, which states that “no person, whether acting under color of law or otherwise, shall intimidate, threaten, or coerce... any person for urging or aiding any person to vote or attempt to vote.” This prohibition legally applies to both private and government actors.
Legislation: S.2838 - Protecting Our Democracy Act | S.1915 - Security from Political Interference in Justice Act of 2019 | S.3307 - Inspector General Access Act of 2025
