EXPLOSIVE: Powerful Red State Official Accused of Hiring Illegal Alien for Top Gov’t Post

The allegations that have been leveled against Indiana’s Republican Secretary of State are serious.

Questions have emerged which put Diego Morales under intense scrutiny based on claims he may have elevated an illegal alien to a top government role.

And a very lucrative job, at that.

The Chief of Staff for the Secretary of State of Indiana is by no means an unimportant job.

And the (so far) unanswered questions alleging that Morales hired an illegal alien to fill that role are threatening to completely undermine his reelection campaign.

What is more, endorsement after endorsement is currently being pulled out from under Morales by key Republicans in the red state of Indiana.

Indiana’s Republican Governor, Mike Braun, was asked where he stands on the shaky state of Morales’ support for reelection.

He told reporters he preferred to let that process play out at the state convention, according to this video report from the local NBC affiliate in Indianapolis:

Besides the rash of pulled endorsements, there is also the issue of Indiana’s Attorney General acknowledging he pushed Diego Morales to give up his reelection bid.

As well as the entry of a challenger for Morales’ position, as has been reported by the local Fox affiliate, Fox 59, out of Indiana:

Following the announcement of Max Engling’s entry into the Republican race for Indiana Secretary of State, two Republican leaders in the state of Indiana have officially withdrawn their support for Diego Morales, the state’s current Secretary of State.

According to a joint statement from U.S. Senator Jim Banks, R-Ind., and Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita, both withdrew their respective endorsements of Morales. Rokita went as far as to say that he has asked Morales to suspend his campaign.

State Treasurer Daniel Elliott called for Morales to resign, saying “scandals, controversy and failures” have damaged the public trust:

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“From allegations of corruption and mismanagement to the news that his own Chief of Staff was a non-citizen illegally registered to vote, these failures have created a constant stream of controversy that has shattered confidence in the office. Indiana Republicans cannot continue asking voters to ignore conduct we would condemn anywhere else. I am calling on Diego Morales to resign immediately so the party and state can move forward. It’s time to unite behind a candidate Republicans can be proud to support.”

I want to be very clear that the allegations being leveled against Republican Diego Morales have not been substantiated in any meaningful way that I am aware of.

I can not confirm the validity of those accusations — I’m simply trying to bring the report of them to you, as it exists, and into the light, with crystal clear reporting.

It will be highly ironic if in fact the allegations of hiring an illegal alien end up proving true — along with any of the long list of previous accusations regarding alleged voting discrepancies and other alleged missteps by Morales — considering Morales’ fervent push in favor of President Trump’s SAVE AMERICA ACT:

🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 https://t.co/CoSaLxujcp

— Diego Morales (@cdiegomorales) May 16, 2026

A long list of accusations is now being heaped up against the Republican, who himself legally immigrated to the United States.

As far as I know, THAT is not in question or up for debate.

Some of the accusations being heaped up against Morales were listed in this report from The Indianapolis Star:

In the midst of a chaotic, quickly changing secretary of state race in Indiana, the incumbent Diego Morales is facing mounting calls to drop his candidacy, and even resign immediately from one elected Republican official.

Morales — who has held the position since 2023 — has received backlash from both sides of the political aisle leading up to the November election. He has no plans to end his candidacy ahead of the June GOP convention in which party insiders will nominate the party’s candidate for the November general election.

From concerns about property records to allegations of military service exaggerations, here’s a timeline of the criticisms Morales has faced since his first campaign in 2022.

During Morales’ 2022 election, two women publicly accused him of sexual assault in a story put out in a gossip column, The Cheat Sheet.

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The secretary of state was accused of exaggerating his military experience after making it the focus of his 2022 campaign, an IndyStar opinion columnist reported in 2022. Records show Morales spent three months and 18 days on active duty during his training period, but left before his eight-year commitment was up.

Just days after being sworn in, Morales raised ethical questions by hiring his brother-in-law to work within the secretary of state’s office — who earned a six-figure salary.

In 2024, the Indiana Capital Chronicle reported that some of Morales’ campaign donors received millions in spending in no-bid contracts — agreements awarded directly to a specific vendor by a government agency. The following year state lawmakers banned the practice.

On March 18, 2025, Morales did not appear before the Senate appropriations committee to present a budget request. That’s because he was on a 10-day trip to India that sparked bipartisan criticism about whether such a trip should be a priority for the secretary of state.

Morales has also faced scrutiny for spending $90,000 of taxpayer money on a GMC Yukon Denali purchased in August 2024 from Fort-Wayne based Kelley Automotive Group, a company with ties to both the state and the GOP.

IndyPolitics, a political news site, reported Morales spent over two years paying $160,000 annually to a deputy chief of staff who is not a citizen, but had attested to being a citizen on a decades-old voter registration application. IndyStar has requested the relevant records.

Some previous Morales supporters viewed the hiring as hypocritical, because Morales has focused on the topic of illegal immigration during his tenure.

In 2024, for example, Morales and Attorney General Todd Rokita sued the Department of Homeland Security and settled to verify the citizenship status of more than 550,000 Indiana voters in 2025, arguing the federal government was being too lenient about confirming voter citizenship. (Emphasis added.)

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There’s one thing I can say for sure — an allegation doesn’t equate to a fact.

Similarly, an accusation doesn’t inherently add up to a crime.

If there’s anything I’ve learned over the years by watching President Trump’s launch into politics, and the subsequent attacks he endured as a result, it’s that you can’t believe every allegation and every accusation that is made against a person.

And especially so if that person is in any way connected to the realm of politics!

In all honesty, I don’t have a clue whether the Republican Secretary of State for Indiana, Diego Morales, is guilty of any of these allegations.

But I know it’s crunch time in a very serious political contest, and these questions need answering — fast.

It appears that the political sky is falling all around Morales at the moment.

Time will tell if he has the answers to convince Indiana voters that he’s still their man, or if these accusations bring him down and put a quick end to his reelection campaign.

That’s the story as I know it, as it currently stands.

Serious accusations require serious answers — but they also require legitimate proof of wrongdoing.

Without proof, those accusations should be dismissed with all the fervor they rode in with, and the accusers rightly become the accused.

It remains to be seen which way the wind will ultimately blow the Secretary of State election in the red state of Indiana.

I’ll keep my eye on the situation, and let you know which way the wind blows and how the political cookie crumbles for Diego Morales — once all is said and done.

What’s your opinion?