Election Fraud Cases
Details
November 2023 Caddo Parish Sheriff Runoff Election
The results of the 2023 Caddo Parish Sheriff Runoff Election, which was decided by one vote, were overturned by a judge due to at least 11 illegal votes that were cast. John Nickelson and Henry Whitehorn won an earlier primary election and faced each other in the November 18 runoff election. The results of the election showed Whitehorn receiving 21,621 votes and Nickelson receiving 21,620 votes. The court found that 2 individuals voted twice in the election, by mail and again in person. Four individuals voted who were under court interdiction (declared mentally incompetent) and thus ineligible to vote. Five individuals submitted absentee ballots that did not have proper signatures or comply with witness requirements under Louisiana law. Due to the illegal votes, it was impossible to determine the result of the election and it was declared void. A new election was ordered to "ensure the public's right to untainted election results." The new election resulted in Whitehorn winning.
Source: https://herit.ag/3XMR0Cq , https://herit.ag/3XQsSz1 , https://herit.ag/3XyHRMp
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June 2021 Compton City Council Race
The results of the June 2021 Compton City Council run-off election were overturned by Judge Michelle Williams Court after it was determined that four votes cast in the election were submitted by registered voters who did not live in the district the council seat represented. A run-off election between incumbent Isaac Galvan and Andre Spicer was decided by one vote and Galvan was declared the winner. Five people including Galvan have been arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit election fraud. The Superior Court Judge threw out four votes that were found to be cast by voters who did not live in the proper jurisdiction, and Spicer was declared the official winner of the election. All of the individuals charged have already pleaded guilty or no contest to the charges.
Source: https://herit.ag/3Np798W , https://herit.ag/3OK0uqL, https://herit.ag/3QU6ora
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2020 Eatonville Town Council Election
A judge overturned the results in the 2020 Eatonville Town Council Seat 4 election after finding that votes had been improperly cast. On election night, the initial vote tally was 262 votes for Marlin Daniels and 253 votes for Tarus Mack. After counting provisional ballots, the vote tally was 262 for Daniels and 261 for Mack, leaving a margin of one vote. Following a recount, two additional uncounted votes were discovered, both for Mack, leading him to be declared the winner. During a bench trial, evidence was presented that one of the two “discovered” ballots was not cast by the alleged voter, and that another voter was coerced by former Mayor Anthony Grant (who was convicted of voter fraud in an unrelated case) to vote for Mack, by suggesting that he would forgive overdue rental payments and not evict the voter if he voted for Mack. The judge ruled that those two votes should have been excluded from the vote tally, and declared Daniels to be the winner of the election to the Eatonville Town Council Seat 4 position.
Source: bit.ly/3FzrFR4 , bit.ly/3Hj6eEq , bit.ly/3qmnPEs
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June 2020 Aberdeen First Ward Alderman Primary Election
Judge Jeff Weill overturned the results of the June 2020 First Ward Alderman Democratic primary election in Aberdeen, Mississippi, due to absentee ballot fraud, and has ordered a new election. Nicholas Holliday was declared the winner of the June primary by a margin of 37 votes over Robert Devaull. After Devaull filed a lawsuit challenging the results of the race, the Monroe County District court found that 66 of the 84 absentee ballots cast should not have been counted because they were not valid. A notary, Dallas Jones, was arrested for election fraud for notarizing ballots without watching voters sign ballots or checking their identification. In addition to the absentee ballot fraud, the court found evidence of intimidation at the polls by various public officials, including Mayor Maurice Howard, candidate Holliday, and Aberdeen Police Chief Henry Randle, which constituted violations of anti-electioneering rules at polling places.
Source: https://herit.ag/3idftfH , https://herit.ag/3BPBXeb, https://herit.ag/3iM4ubO
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The 2018 election for Georgia's 28th House district was overturned twice by Senior Superior Court Judge David Sweat because some out-of-district voters submitted ballots, some voters moved out of the district between the first and second runoff elections, and there was at least one instance of duplicate voting. Though individuals were not prosecuted, this northeastern Georgia district faced three elections in the same year between the same Republican candidates (no Democrats ran). In the end, the incumbent lost to challenger Chris Erwin.
Source: https://herit.ag/3vOk50B, https://herit.ag/3bdrgWS
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A closely contested run-off election for a Justice of Peace seat was overturned by Visiting District Court Judge Joel Johnson, following a two-day hearing. A challenge to the election was filed by Ofelia "Ofie" Gutierrez, the candidate running against long time seatholder, Esequiel "Cheque" De La Paz, for the Justice of the Peace seat in Kleberg County. After a recount narrowed the vote differential to just six votes (312 to 318), seven of the sixteen votes contested by Guiterrez were thrown out by Judge Johnson, because they were cast by relatives of De La Paz who lived outside the Precinct 4 boundaries. A new election was ordered to be held before the end of August.
Source: https://herit.ag/3iTTEkf, https://herit.ag/3BQhSVo
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In a Republican primary for a seat on the Kaufman County Court, Dennis Jones appeared to beat his challenger Tracy Gray by one vote. Gray challenged the results, claiming that a "vote harvester" had submitted a number of illegal mail-in ballots and that numerous eligible provisional ballots were uncounted. A district judge agreed, invalidating the election results and ordering a new election. The special election was held on July 21 and Tracy Gray prevailed, winning by 404 votes.
Source: https://herit.ag/378DJJa, https://herit.ag/3f3wjeH
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Armando O'Cana won a run-off mayoral election in Mission, Texas, unseating longtime holder Norberto 'Beto' Salinas. Salinas contested the results of the election, after strong evidence emerged that O'Cana's campaign was bribing voters, tampering with mail-in ballots, and improperly assisting voters at the polls. After a two week trial during which numerous witnesses testified, Judge J. Bonner Dorsey voided the election stating, 'I hold or find, by clear and convincing evidence, that the number of illegal votes was in excess of 158.' Attorneys for O'Cana are currently appealing the ruling in the 13th Texas Court of Appeals.
Source: https://herit.ag/3BEYlH8, https://herit.ag/3i88t3v, https://herit.ag/3iWOsfg
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Wetumpka City Council District 2
A judge overturned the preliminary election results and declared Lewis Washington as the winner in a contested Wetumpka City Council District 2 election. On election night, it appeared that Washington's opponent, Percy Gill, who was the incumbent, had won by three votes. Washington challenged the result, and following a trial in which live witnesses and forensics experts testified, the judge threw out eight absentee ballots that had been cast for Gill either because the signatures had been forged or they had not been notarized or signed in front of the requisite number of witnesses, and declared Washington to be the winner.
Source: https://herit.ag/3f4Fv2v, https://herit.ag/377vIV7
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Penny Hubbard, the incumbent, won the 2016 Democratic primary for Missouri's 78th House District by 90 votes. Her challenger, Bruce Franks Jr., contested the results, citing the lopsided absentee vote tally that heavily favored Hubbard. District Judge Rex Burlison determined that a sufficient number of improper absentee ballots had been cast to change the results of the election, and ordered a special election. Mr. Franks won the re-do by a margin of 1,533 votes. The election of Rodney Hubbard Sr., Penny Hubbard's husband, who won his 2016 primary for 5th Democratic Ward committeeman, is also being challenged by his opponent Rasheen Aldridge, again citing irregularities in absentee ballots.
Source: https://herit.ag/3rKEfa4
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Following a contested election because of voter irregularities for the Precinct 7 City Council seat in the town of Lumberton, the State Board of Elections ordered new election. In the initial election for the City Council seat, incumbent Leon Maynor held a one-vote lead over challenger Laura Sampson after several recounts. The second election also had problems, with Maynor successfully challenging the residency of 20 voters. Ultimately, roughly half of the 850 provisional ballots cast were thrown out for various reasons, and in the final tally Maynor retained his seat by a 20-vote margin.
Source: https://herit.ag/3i7JoWw, https://herit.ag/2ULKU7V, https://herit.ag/3x3ryYJ
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For more than a year, the town of Pembroke had no mayor. Challenges stemming from voting irregularities and possible fraud continue long after a disputed November 2015 election and a March 2016 re-do. In the 2015 election, former town councilman Allen Dial won the mayoral post, but following residency challenges by runner-up Greg Cummings, the State Board of Elections ordered a new election be held. Cummings prevailed in that election, but ongoing challenges prevented him from assuming office. In August, four ballots were thrown out for being improperly cast, and Cummings is still ahead in the vote tally. Pembroke's recent electoral history is colorful to say the least, having had to re-do an election in 2014 as well.
Source: https://herit.ag/3x67EfW, https://herit.ag/3zIBGbi, https://herit.ag/3y8QGPg
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In the 2014 Turkey Creek election, incumbent mayor Heather Cloud was voted out of office by a margin of four votes. It was later revealed that Stanley Leger, a campaign employee for challenger Bert Campbell, had paid $15 each to four mentally impaired individuals in exchange for their promise to vote for Campbell. Cloud challenged the election. The Third Circuit Court of Appeals of Louisiana ordered that the four votes be struck and a new election be held, which Cloud won. Leger later pleaded guilty to illegal electioneering, receiving a suspended six-month jail sentence and 18 months' probation. He was also ordered to pay a $500 fine and $2,000 in restitution to Mayor Cloud.
Source: https://herit.ag/3rEwCBV, https://herit.ag/3zH51CV, https://herit.ag/3yb4kRM
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Fernando Gonzalez won a seat on the Perth Amboy City Council by 10 votes in an election where at least 13 illegal absentee ballots were cast. A Superior Court judge subsequently overturned the election results and ordered a new election be held in May 2015 for the seat.
Source: https://herit.ag/3iVp35W, https://herit.ag/3BOrBeP
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At least 30 fraudulent votes were cast in the November 2013 elections, prompting the town to re-do the election. As of April 2014, an ongoing investigation into fraudulent activity has revealed votes cast by non-residents and the use of improper ID to verify residency for the election.
Source: https://herit.ag/3l2K9SA
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.”
