Armed Homeland Security officers have reportedly been knocking on doors across the country and questioning residents about their immigration status and voter eligibility, prompting accusations of voter intimidation and fears among New Yorkers that similar tactics could soon reach their neighborhoods.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) says they are investigating voter fraud as the Midterms loom. In a statement on Oct. 23, t he federal agency said it cuffed ten Green Card holders and one person they describe as an “illegal alien” in North Carolina for posing as citizens and casting ballots in the Tar Heel State during previous elections. On Oct. 22, the United States Department of Justice posted on their X account that they arrested a Syracuse woman voting in races for the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives.

This comes as reports circulate that the armed feds have been knocking on doors and questioning residents regarding both their legal and voting status. While DHS rails that they believe hundreds of thousands of illegal ballots have been cast, a report by CBS News indicates less than 200 people have been charged with voting-fraud related offenses since the beginning of the Trump administration among the 227 million registered voters in the U.S.

With fears of immigration enforcement at an all-time high and this midterm election expected to be particularly divisive, immigration advocates say they fear that ICE going door to door could soon become a reality in the Big Apple in an attempt to strike fear into legal voters.

Co-director of Make the Road Action in New York Daniel Coates told amNewYork that he believes these types of investigations are not about rooting out criminal activity and instead is focusing on voter intimidation.

“Study after study confirms that a vanishingly small number of non-citizens vote in elections. It is a non-issue. This new tactic is yet another desperate attempt to use fear to suppress the vote in immigrant communities by an administration bent on hanging onto power,” Daniel Coates, said. “We see what they are doing, and we will not be intimidated. With the midterm elections less than two weeks away, we are connecting with voters across New York to ensure they understand what is at stake, know their rights, and have the tools they need before they hit the polls. The right to vote is sacred, and our communities are ready to use it and protect it."

Public Advocate Jumaane Williams told amNewYork that he agrees with Coates’ assessment. Going further still, Williams says he expects more acts of intimidation as Nov. 3 creeps closer.

“Of course it's voter intimidation. They want to illegally intimidate voters. I bet money that across this country there's going to be ICE agents with guns at voting sites. I'm fully expecting that, and we're asking folks to have courage in the midst of fear and just have fortitude to keep moving forward and make sure your vote is counted,” Williams said. “We've seen people get shot in their homes, so it's something that we've been saying was going to be a problem for quite some time.”

This comes as ICE activity across the five boroughs has ramped up significantly over the last several months. Earlier this month, Brooklyn residents say ICE agents posed as NYPD officers to gain access to an apartment building and detain a Haitian immigrant. On Oct. 8, federal agents shot an alleged gang member in broad daylight as he had his 5-year-old child in his car.

Despite the controversy, DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin charges that the enforcement on voter fraud is about protecting the law.

“They knowingly violated our laws. Now, thanks to the devoted patriots of HSI and our partners at the Department of Justice, these aliens will have to answer for violating the sacred right of Americans to elect their own leadership. Let this be a message to any non-citizens out there who are thinking about voting in our elections: If you illegally vote, we will arrest you, and you will be charged. Only American citizens should be electing American leaders,” Mullin said in a statement.

Meanwhile, advocacy groups like Hands Off NYC called the door-to-door strategy authoritarianism and weaponization of the government.

“When news breaks of federal agents going door-to-door in the lead-up to our elections, the goal isn’t election safety or security; it’s an authoritarian tactic to stoke fear,” part of a statement from Rebecca Rodriguez, Co-Director of Hands Off NYC, read. “ The Trump Administration has tried to weaponize every branch of government to intimidate opposition, spread fear in our communities, and make desperate attempts to seize more power for themselves. They will not succeed.”

Dean Moses is the Police Bureau Chief at amNewYork and resident photographer. He leads coverage of the NYPD, crime, criminal justice, and breaking news.

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