HARRISBURG, Pa (WHP) — Charges filed against two people in Central Pennsylvania accused of illegally voting in the 2024 election are drawing mixed reactions from Harrisburg residents, with some calling it a sign of problems in the voting system and others questioning why federal prosecutors pursued the case.

READ MORE | Two living in Central PA voted illegally in 2024 election: DOJ

Some residents said the situation points to a flaw in how elections are administered. Others said the U.S. Department of Justice should not have pursued the matter.

Harrisburg resident Justin Kindig called the charges “very extreme.”

“I don’t think that anybody should potentially face criminal punishment for feeling that they have a voice or an opinion on anything,” Kindig said.

Kindig also criticized the decision to investigate and bring charges, saying, “Penalizing someone for doing that, I think that is crossing a line because there’s a lot of people who do a lot of way worse things that go without punishment.”

Another Harrisburg resident, Juliano Fletcher, said he believed the issue reflected a broader breakdown in the system rather than solely the actions of the people accused.

“I feel like it wasn’t necessarily even their fault,” Fletcher said. “I feel like it was the system’s fault. Like how they have everything set up. If somebody was able to do that, that means they did something wrong on their end,” Fletcher said.

Fletcher said the problem should have been addressed earlier in the process, adding, “As a country, we should probably focus a little bit more on who we’re allowing in and who we’re allowing to vote.”