Election Fraud Cases
Details
James Singletary, of Wake County, was charged by the state for his role in connection with an absentee ballot trafficking scheme to benefit Republican congressional candidate Mark Harris during the 2018 general election. Singletary was charged with conspiracy to commit felonious obstruction of justice, possession of absentee ballot, and conspiracy to commit possession of absentee ballot. Singletary and others were affiliated with Leslie McCrae Dowless, a political operative in Bladen County and a consultant for Harris. Singletary and others unlawfully collected ballots from voters, falsely claimed to have witnessed the voter casting his or her vote, and mailed the ballots in a manner intended to conceal that the voter had not mailed the ballot. Singletary pleaded guilty to a felony charge of conspiracy to possess an absentee ballot and was sentenced to 120 days in the misdemeanor confinement program, which was suspended to 12 months of supervised probation, and ordered to complete 100 hours of community service and pay $393.50 in court costs.
Source: https://herit.ag/3iu2mta
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Todd Krysiak was charged by the state in Belknap County, with voting in more than one state, a felony, during the 2016 general election. Krysiak voted in person in Alton, NH, where he resides, and again in person in Leominster, MA, where he formerly lived and where he was still registered to vote. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 90 days in jail, suspended for two years on the condition of good behavior, and his right to vote in New Hampshire was terminated. He was fined $4,000 and ordered to pay a penalty of $960.
Source: herit.ag/3LoAKS2, herit.ag/3Nasp5D
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Edward Amirault, 79, pleaded guilty to the Class B felony of "Voting in More than One State Prohibited." Amirault had voted in the 2018 general election in New Hampshire by absentee ballot and then cast another ballot in the same election in-person in Massachusetts. He was sentenced to 180 days in jail, all of which were suspended on the condition of two years of good behavior. Amirault was also ordered to pay a fine of $4,000 and a penalty assessment of $960 and was ordered to serve 100 hours of community service.
Source: https://herit.ag/3scKvZw , https://herit.ag/3s7Pnz9
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Sigmund Boganski was charged by the state after voting twice in the 2016 General Election. He voted by absentee ballot in Arizona and again in-person in New Hampshire. Boganski pleaded guilty to one count of voting in more than one state. He was sentenced to 90 days in the House of Corrections, which was suspended for two years on the condition of good behavior. He was also fined $1,000 and assessed a $240 penalty. Boganski’s right to vote in New Hampshire was terminated.
Source: https://herit.ag/3CzgokL
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Frederick Gattuso, former Carteret Republican mayoral candidate, was charged with one count of fraudulent voting for voting twice during the November 2020 presidential election as different people with similar names. Gattuso pleaded guilty to one count of tampering with public records and was sentenced to one year of probation.
Source: https://herit.ag/3CgCA39
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Kimberly McPherson, a city of Troy council member and Republican, pleaded guilty to one count of identity theft for casting absentee ballots in the names of two other people in the 2021 city council election. In seeking re-election, McPherson cast at least one absentee ballot on behalf of another during the primary election, and during the general election cast absentee ballots for at least two people other than herself. As part of her plea agreement, McPherson has agreed to resign her position on the city council. She faces up to 5 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 when she is sentenced.
Source: https://herit.ag/3OObF1U , https://herit.ag/3QRV7HP
Details
John “Jack” Burkman, along with his accomplice Jacob Wahl, was charged by the state with 15 felony counts for a robocall phone scheme in which calls were made in the name of a non-existent group called the 1599 project to tens of thousands of voters in Ohio, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, and Illinois urging voters not to vote by mail during the summer of 2020. The robocalls falsely stated that voting by mail could lead to voter information being harvested by law enforcement, debt collectors, and other government agencies. Burkman was charged with eight counts of telecommunications fraud and seven counts of “bribery” by attempting to induce individuals through unlawful means not to register or vote. He pleaded guilty to one count of telecommunications fraud in exchange for the dismissal of all other charges. He was sentenced to 180 days of house arrest with GPS monitoring, 24 months of probation, fined $2,500, plus $20 per month in supervision fees, and ordered to complete 500 hours of community service in a voter registration drive aimed at low and middle income individuals in the Washington D.C. area.
Source: herit.ag/3G510OC , herit.ag/3hAr62F, herit.ag/3V9PYfa, herit.ag/3WqjAWO, herit.ag/3YxkX82
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Jacob Wohl, along with his accomplice John “Jack” Burkman, was charged by the state with 15 felony counts for a robocall phone scheme in which calls were made in the name of a non-existent group called the 1599 project to tens of thousands of voters in Ohio, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, and Illinois urging voters not to vote by mail during the summer of 2020. The robocalls falsely stated that voting by mail could lead to voter information being harvested by law enforcement, debt collectors, and other government agencies. Wohl was charged with eight counts of telecommunications fraud and seven counts of “bribery” by attempting to induce individuals through unlawful means not to register or vote. He pleaded guilty to one count of telecommunications fraud in exchange for the dismissal of all other charges. He was sentenced to 180 days of house arrest with GPS monitoring, 24 months of probation, fined $2,500, plus $20 per month in supervision fees, and ordered to complete 500 hours of community service in a voter registration drive aimed at low and middle income individuals in the Washington D.C. area.
Source: herit.ag/3G510OC , herit.ag/3hAr62F, herit.ag/3V9PYfa , herit.ag/3jdN5wS
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Michael "Ozzie" Myers, Domenick Demuro, and Marie Beren
Former U.S. Congressman Michael "Ozzie" Myers was charged with over 13 felonies for his role in orchestrating a scheme to stuff ballot boxes in favor of Democrat candidates he either favored or represented as a consultant. Myers, a former Democrat congressman who was ousted from office and served time in prison on charges of bribery and corruption due to his involvement in the Abscam sting, orchestrated schemes in Philadelphia's 39th Ward, the 36th and 2nd Divisions, to commit ballot fraud. He conspired with Domenick Demuro and Marie Beren, Judges of Elections for each ward by bribing them to add additional fraudulent votes to voting machines for candidates Myers represented or supported as a political consultant. This scheme occurred during elections between 2014-2018. He pleaded guilty to charges of depriving persons of civil rights, bribery, falsification of voting records, and conspiring to illegally vote in a federal election. If his plea deal is accepted by the judge he faces up to 60 years in prison and over $1 million in fines. He will be sentenced in September.
Source: https://herit.ag/3QUaOys, https://herit.ag/3OPOmEV, https://herit.ag/3OHSA18
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Francis Presto of South Park, a registered Republican, requested and cast an absentee ballot on behalf of his deceased wife. He was charged with felonies for interfering with an election and unlawful use of a computer and a misdemeanor charge for forging a ballot. He was sentenced to a diversion program of 2 years and ordered to complete 250 hours of community service. His charges will be dropped upon completion of the terms of his diversion program.
Source: https://herit.ag/3ONL8BN, https://herit.ag/3P2FQT9, https://herit.ag/3OM1RoO
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Rasheen Crews was charged by the state in Philadelphia County with two felony counts of criminal solicitation to commit forgery and theft by failure to make a required disposition of funds received after engaging in a ballot petition signature scheme. Crews, a political consultant in Philadelphia, perpetrated a ballot petition fraud scheme to get his clients listed on the ballot for the May 2019 Democratic primary races. Crews and his employees, acting at his direction, forged thousands of signatures in an effort to obtain the required number of legal signatures needed for his clients to be listed on the ballot. In addition to forging signatures by hand, over 1,000 signatures were photocopied rather than hand-written. Crews pleaded guilty to the two felony counts, was sentenced to 5 years of probation, assessed fines and fees of $761.25, and barred from participating in political campaigns during his probation.
Source: https://herit.ag/49L7bUU , https://herit.ag/46pxHjM , https://herit.ag/49Q0e4P , https://herit.ag/415bsPf
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Cheryl Mihaliak was charged by the state in Lancaster County with two counts of forging and destroying ballots after filling out and submitting an absentee ballot on behalf of her deceased mother during the May 2022 primary election. Mihaliak had requested an absentee ballot for her and her mother (Teresa Mihaliak), as her caregiver, but her mother died on April 14 before she could fill out the ballot. However, the county board of elections received a ballot for the mother completed by her daughter on April 28. Mihaliak pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of forging and destroying ballots and was sentenced to 2 years of probation, assessed $1,610.75 in fines and fees, and is barred from voting for 4 years.
Source: https://herit.ag/46vmWwi , https://herit.ag/3MWw8mt , https://herit.ag/3GhgU7H
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Melissa Fisher was charged with a misdemeanor count of violating absentee and mail-in ballot provisions after signing and submitting an absentee ballot on behalf of her deceased mother during the 2020 general election in Quakertown. She pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor charge and two unrelated theft charges and was sentenced to 3 to 23 months in prison and 3 years’ probation.
Source: https://herit.ag/3A4ZlUV
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Robert Nickerson was charged by the state in Newport County with two felony counts of mail-ballot fraud for voting twice in the 2020 General Election after receiving a tip from a Florida election official. Nickerson voted by absentee ballot in Rhode Island, where he registered to vote in 1996, and again by absentee ballot in Florida, where he registered to vote in 2020. He pleaded no contest to the charges in exchange for no jail time. He was ordered to pay a $500 fine and was assessed $1,103.25 in fees and court costs.
Source: https://herit.ag/41BIuFQ, https://herit.ag/41D4HUe
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Richard Garrett, a former Clarksville City Councilman and Mayor Pro Tem, pled guilty to a state felony charge of voter registration fraud for providing a false address as his primary residence, when, in fact, he lived and voted outside the district that he represented. He was sentenced to probation for two years and assessed $1,719 in fines and fees.
Source: https://herit.ag/3CwYjn5
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.”
