Election Fraud Cases
Details
Jason Schofield, a Republican Elections Commissioner for Rensselaer County Board of Elections in Troy, New York, was federally charged with 12 felony counts of unlawful possession and use of a means of identification of another person to fraudulently request, complete, and submit absentee ballots on behalf of voters during the 2021 Rensselaer County Primary and General elections. Schofield, and other Rensselaer election board employees working under his direction, used the New York State Board of Elections website to request absentee ballots on behalf of 8 voters using their names and dates of birth. These individuals had either no interest in voting absentee or otherwise, did not request absentee ballots or assistance to vote or obtain an absentee ballot, or did not know Schofield was using their personal information. Schofield personally obtained 4 absentee ballots knowing that the county board of elections records would falsely reflect the ballots were mailed to the voters via USPS. For the other 4 voters, Schofield completed the ballots and brought the ballots to the voters, instructed them to sign the ballot envelopes, which were submitted in the elections. Schofield pleaded guilty to all 12 felony charges He has resigned from his position as Commissioner of the Rensselaer County Board of Elections as part of his plea agreement and is ordered to pay an assessment of $1,200 at the time of sentencing. He faces a maximum of 5 years in prison and fines of $250,000 and cannot accept reappointment to the Board of Elections as long as he is on probation or supervised release.
Source: herit.ag/3RZwHxk , herit.ag/3HV4i6Y , herit.ag/3HUe74Z , herit.ag/3RSEZa9
Details
Guillermina Fuentes and Alma Yadira Juarez
Guillermina Fuentes was charged with one count of ballot abuse for ballot trafficking during the 2020 primary election. Fuentes was the former mayor of San Luis, is a well-known political figure in her community, and works as a political consultant. Using that influence, Fuentes persuaded voters to allow her to collect their ballots and, in some instances, fill out ballots on behalf of the voters. Fuentes admitted that she "knowingly collect[ed] ballots from another person, and those early ballots belonged to individuals for whom I am not a family member, household member, or caregiver." She pleaded guilty to one count of ballot abuse. She will be sentenced at the end of June.
Source: https://herit.ag/3blsnHe, https://herit.ag/3Ot2nIP, https://herit.ag/3OJy1RV
Details
Alma Yadira Juarez and Guillermina Fuentes
Alma Yadira Juarez was charged with one count of ballot abuse for ballot trafficking during the 2020 primary election. Juarez was alleged to have collected ballots filled out by Guillermina Fuentes and did not have permission to hold the ballots. She pleaded guilty to one count of ballot abuse. She will be sentenced at the end of June.
Source: https://herit.ag/3bltTZU , https://herit.ag/3OMdjRC
Details
Tracey Kay McKee, of Scottsdale, was indicted by a grand jury on one count of illegal voting and one count of perjury. McKee, a registered Republican, cast a ballot in the name of her deceased mother in the 2020 general election. She pleaded guilty to one count of illegal voting, a felony, was sentenced to two years of probation, and ordered to perform 100 hours of community service, and ordered to pay $2,144 in fines and fees.
Source: https://herit.ag/3HUHrXH, https://herit.ag/3GVHMZ4 , https://herit.ag/3sb2oYw
Details
Marcia Johnson, 70, of Lake Havasu City pleaded guilty to the Class D felony of Voting More Than Once in the November 2018 general election. Johnson cast her own mail-in ballot as well as one sent to her deceased father whose name remained on the voter rolls after his death in 2012. She was sentenced to one year of probation, charged a special assessment of $100, and fined $1,000.
Source: https://herit.ag/3IQEE1n, https://herit.ag/3iPCODu , https://herit.ag/3JW6n21, https://herit.ag/3tVwII2
Details
Krista Michelle Connor, 55, pleaded guilty to one felony count of Attempted Illegal Voting. Connor had signed and cast an early mail-in ballot in the name of her mother, Jeanne Sullivan, who died a month prior to the 2020 general election. She was sentenced to 100 hours of community service and fined $890.
Source: https://herit.ag/3sc3IKT, https://herit.ag/3QQGTqG, https://herit.ag/3sbfo0m
Details
Elizabeth Gale of San Diego was charged by the state with four felony counts of fraudulently casting a vote, impersonating a voter, attempting to vote as a fictious person, and personate with a written instrument after casting an absentee ballot on behalf of her deceased mother during the 2021 California Gubernatorial Recall Election. After absentee ballots were sent to all registered Madera County voters, Gale filled out the ballot, forged her mother's signature, and falsely swore as a witness to her mother signing the ballot. Gale pleaded nolo contendere to one felony count of fraudulently casting a vote. She was sentenced to two years’ probation.
Source: https://herit.ag/3QKH06Z, https://herit.ag/3KdLJve
Details
Barry Morphew was charged with one count of forgery and one count of a mail-in ballot offense after submitting a completed absentee ballot on behalf of his missing wife during the 2020 general election in Chaffee County. Morphew told the FBI he submitted the fraudulent ballot because he "wanted Trump to win." He pleaded guilty to one felony charge of forgery and was sentenced to one year of probation. He was also fined and assessed court costs of $600.
Source: https://herit.ag/3dwxSnD, https://herit.ag/3A0olNf
Details
John Mallozzi, former Chair of the Stamford Democratic City Committee, was convicted following a bench trial of 14 counts of second-degree forgery and 14 counts of making false statements in absentee balloting. Mallozzi signed and submitted absentee ballots for individuals he did not know in connection with 2015 elections for spots on the Board of Finance, Board of Education, and Board of Representatives. The conduct involved 31 fraudulent applications and 26 fraudulent ballots. He is awaiting sentencing.
Source: https://herit.ag/3rwegE4v
Details
William Chase, of Walker County, a convicted felon, was charged with forgery, illegal acts regarding election documents, unlawful acts regarding elector's vote, and duplicate voting after filling out another person's absentee ballot in the January 2021 runoff election. The ballot was mistakenly sent to a P.O. Box at the former address of the registered voter. The voter inquired with the Walker County Elections Office when she did not receive her ballot, but her husband received his ballot. Election officials discovered Chase had submitted the woman’s ballot by forging her signature; Chase’s fingerprints were on the fraudulent ballot. Chase had also already submitted his own ballot in addition to the fraudulent absentee ballot. Chase was convicted by a jury on all counts and sentenced to 25 years, with 15 years to be served in prison and the remaining 10 years to be served on probation. He was also ordered to pay a $50 public defender application fee and "pay a probation supervision fee of $32 per month to the Probation Office and shall pay all fines, costs, restitution, and surcharges at the rate of $132 per month beginning within thirty days of release from custody."
Source: https://herit.ag/3XfVtuo , https://herit.ag/3XoSXCh
Details
James Bartlett was charged by the state in Dearborn County with one felony count each of perjury and fraudulent subscription of another person's name after his involvement in an absentee ballot trafficking scheme during the Lawrenceburg 2019 General Election. Bartlett, a former City of Lawrenceburg employee, worked with co-conspirator Troy Kemper to fill out fraudulent absentee ballot applications and absentee ballots. The fraud was detected by the Election Board because the signatures on the original voter registration forms did not match the signatures on the absentee ballot applications and the absentee ballots, and after contacting 20 voters, learned they did not apply for an absentee ballot or permit Kemper to turn in their ballot. Bartlett pleaded guilty to one felony count of conspiracy of fraudulent subscription and was sentenced to 910 days in prison, which was suspended if he completes one year of probation without violation. He was also ordered to complete 40 hours of community service and fined and assessed court costs of $1,285. Upon completion of his probation, his felony charge will be reduced to a misdemeanor.
Source: herit.ag/3HVQ99l , herit.ag/3HTrl1X , herit.ag/3RXuAdp
Details
Troy Kemper was charged by the state in Dearborn County with one felony count each of perjury and fraudulent subscription of another person's name after his involvement in an absentee ballot trafficking scheme during the Lawrenceburg 2019 General Election. Kemper was charged for his role in submitting fraudulent absentee ballot applications and ballots along with his co-conspirator James Bartlett. The fraud was detected by the Election Board because the signatures on the original voter registration forms did not match the signatures on the absentee ballot applications and absentee ballots, and after contacting 20 voters, learned they did not apply for an absentee ballot or permit Kemper to turn in their ballot. In exchange for agreeing to testify truthfully against James Bartlett and the state dismissing the fraudulent subscription charge, Kemper pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of perjury and was sentenced to 365 days with 363 days suspended, and he was assessed court costs and filing fees of $210.
Source: herit.ag/3XoQ4Rj , herit.ag/3HPWEdK , herit.ag/3HZrrov
Details
Trenae Myesha Rainey, 28, pleaded guilty to three misdemeanor counts of making a false statement on an absentee ballot application. During the 2020 general election, Rainey, an employee at an assisted living facility, completed roughly two dozen absentee voter applications, forging individual signatures of residents. She then handed over the ballots to another employee, whom she instructed to send the absentee ballot requests to the county election clerk. Rainey was sentenced to two years' probation, in which the first 45 days would be spent in the county jail.
Source: https://herit.ag/3K0oJzc, https://herit.ag/3DptHCW
Details
Carless Clark, 59, pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of forging a signature on another individual's absentee ballot. In the 2020 general election, Clark signed and returned her grandson's absentee ballot, citing her concern that he would not have enough time to vote in-person on Election Day, which the grandson did. Clark was sentenced to twelve months' probation and nineteen days of community service.
Source: https://herit.ag/3uFWbEt, https://herit.ag/3iRCVi4
Details
Abdihakim A. Essa, of Minneapolis, was accused of intentionally making or signing false certificates when submitting absentee ballots in Hennepin County. Essa, a non-citizen, forged his father's signature as a witness on the ballots. He pleaded guilty to four of the thirteen counts, all state felony offenses. He was sentenced to 180 days in an adult correctional facility; all but 90 days of this sentence was stayed pending successful completion of 2 years of supervised probation. He was also assessed $78 in court costs.
Source: https://herit.ag/3U025ev, https://herit.ag/3TYJwXY
Key & Definitions
Types of Cases
Any case that results in a defendant entering a plea of guilty or no contest, or being found guilty in court of election-related offenses.
A finding by a court of law that fraud occurred in an election, including judicial orders overturning election results or ordering a new election due to fraud.
Any civil case resulting in fines or other penalties imposed for a violation of election laws.
A finding by a government body that fraud occurred in an election, including orders overturning election results or ordering a new election due to fraud.
Any criminal case in which a judge directs a defendant into a pre-trial diversion program, or stays or defers adjudication with the understanding that the conviction will be cleared upon completion of the program.
Types of Voter Fraud
Requesting absentee ballots and voting without the knowledge of the actual voter; or obtaining the absentee ballot from a voter and either filling it in directly and forging the voter’s signature or illegally telling the voter who to vote for.
Illegal registration and voting by individuals who are not U.S. citizens, are convicted felons, or are otherwise not eligible to vote.
Voting in the name of other legitimate voters and voters who have died, moved away, or lost their right to vote because they are felons, but remain registered.
Paying voters to cast either an in-person or absentee ballot for a particular candidate.
Forging the signatures of registered voters on the ballot petitions that must be filed with election officials in some states for a candidate or issue to be listed on the official ballot
Registering in multiple locations and voting in the same election in more than one jurisdiction or state.
Voting under fraudulent voter registrations that either use a phony name and a real or fake address or claim residence in a particular jurisdiction where the registered voter does not actually live and is not entitled to vote.
Changing the actual vote count either in a precinct or at the central location where votes are counted.
Forcing or intimidating voters—particularly the elderly, disabled, illiterate, and those for whom English is a second language—to vote for particular candidates while supposedly providing them with “assistance.”
