Kansas Mayor Faces Felony Charges — and Possible Deportation — Over Alleged Voter Fraud
COLDWATER, Kan. — A small-town Kansas mayor is now at the center of a high-stakes legal fight that could cost him his job, his freedom, and even his right to remain in the United States.
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Joe Ceballos, the longtime mayor of Coldwater, was charged with six felony counts by Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach — three counts of “voting without being qualified” and three counts of election perjury. Prosecutors say Ceballos, a legal permanent resident originally from Mexico, voted in three separate elections despite not being a U.S. citizen.
The charges were filed one day after Ceballos was re-elected mayor.
State officials allege Ceballos illegally cast ballots in the 2022 general election, the 2023 municipal election and the 2024 primary. Ceballos received his green card in 1990 and only applied for U.S. citizenship earlier this year — a timeline prosecutors argue proves he was ineligible to vote.
Ceballos says he believed he was allowed to vote as a legal permanent resident and insists the charges stem from a misunderstanding, not intentional fraud.
“I haven’t seen Mexico since I was four,” he told local reporters. “I don’t speak Spanish anymore. If I get deported, it would wreck my life.”
If convicted, Ceballos faces a prison sentence of up to 68 months, thousands of dollars in fines, and potential deportation proceedings — a rare outcome for a sitting U.S. mayor.
Coldwater residents have been split by the case. Many say they believed Ceballos was a naturalized citizen and credit him with years of public service, including leading community projects and volunteering across the town of roughly 1,000 people. Others argue the law is clear and must be enforced.
The case is also drawing national attention because of AG Kris Kobach’s long-standing push to crack down on alleged non-citizen voting — a claim repeatedly disputed by election experts, who say such cases are extremely rare.
For now, Ceballos remains in office and is awaiting his next court hearing. But the stakes are unmistakably high: one of America’s smallest towns is now watching to see whether its mayor will keep his job — or be removed from the country entirely.