Election Fraud Cases

Richard Howard

Richard Howard was involved in a scheme that offered cigarettes and money to homeless people on Skid Row in exchange for fake signatures on ballot initiatives and voter registration forms. This resulted in hundreds of fraudulent signatures. He pleaded no contest to one felony count of subscribing a fictitious name, or the name of another to an initiative petition and registration of a fictitious person. He was sentenced to a suspended sentence of three years and three years of probation.

Source: bit.ly/3kUNeSa, bit.ly/314Q6Us

Norman Hall

Norman Hall, of Los Angeles, participated in scheme to give homeless people on Skid Row cash and cigarettes in exchange for fraudulently signing ballot petition initiatives and filling out voter registration forms. These crimes took place during both the 2016 and 2018 election cycles. Hall was charged with circulating a petition with false names, and pleaded guilty. He was sentenced to 1 year in county jail, 3 years of probation, and was ordered to complete 100 hours of community service.

Source: https://herit.ag/3yakSJJ, https://herit.ag/3zDnYX9,

Louis Wise

Louis Wise was involved in a scheme that offered cigarettes and money to homeless people on Skid Row in exchange for fake signatures on ballot initiatives and voter registration forms. This resulted in hundreds of fraudulent signatures. He pleaded no contest to one felony count of subscribing a fictitious name, or the name of another to an initiative petition and registration of a fictitious person. He was sentenced to a suspended sentence of 16 months in state prison and three years of formal probation.

Source: https://herit.ag/3yf300A, https://herit.ag/3zEg53G

Christopher Williams

Christopher Williams was involved in a scheme that offered cigarettes and money to homeless people on Skid Row in exchange for fake signatures on ballot initiatives and voter registration forms. This resulted in hundreds of fraudulent signatures. He pleaded no contest to one felony count of circulating an initiative or petition containing false, forged or fictitious names. Williams was sentenced to 3 years’ probation.

Source: https://herit.ag/2WsDEhC, https://herit.ag/3Go5VZb

Nickey Huntley

Nickey Huntley was involved in a scheme that offered cigarettes and money to homeless people on Skid Row in exchange for fake signatures on ballot initiatives and voter registration forms. This resulted in hundreds of fraudulent signatures. He pleaded no contest to one felony count of circulating an initiative or petition containing false, forged or fictitious names. Huntley was sentenced to 3 years’ probation. 

Source: https://herit.ag/3l2W3vQ, https://herit.ag/3i5ACYN

Larry Wiggins

Larry Wiggins, 62, a registered Democrat from Sarasota, was charged by the state with one count of vote by mail fraud after he requested a mail-in ballot on behalf of his deceased wife during the 2020 general election. Election staff discovered the fraud during a routine check of the voter rolls, which revealed that his wife had died two years earlier. Wiggins forged his wife's signature on the ballot request form, and admitted that he intended to mail it back once he received it, but he was stopped by law enforcement. He pleaded nolo contendere to one count of vote-by-mail fraud, and was sentenced to 24 months’ probation, 100 hours of community service, and assessed $738 in court costs, fees, and fines.

Source: https://herit.ag/3Etplfa, https://herit.ag/3Vhy62G

Delores "Dee" Handy

Delores "Dee" Handy, of Crowley was found guilty of failing to mark a ballot as instructed when assisting an elderly voter, a misdemeanor. She was sentenced to 11 months in jail which was suspended, two years of probation, and fined $800.

Source: https://herit.ag/3i9o8PS, https://herit.ag/3zFrFLL

William Rojas

William Rojas, of Hoboken, acted illegally by attempting to bribe voters with $50 to send in mail-in ballots to support a candidate for a seat on the Hoboken City Council during the 2015 Hoboken municipal election. Rojas was charged with and pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring with others to use the mail to promote a voter bribery scheme. He was sentenced to one year of probation.

Source: bit.ly/3dz9yPG , bit.ly/2QfW2Y8 , bit.ly/2PaCzI4 , bit.ly/32sVwIW

May 2020 Third Ward Paterson City Council Election

The May 2020 election for the Third Ward Paterson City Council was overturned by Superior Court Judge Ernest M. Caposela because of what he called “mail in vote procedural violations”. The Passaic County Board of Elections became aware of potential absentee ballots that were improperly cast and handled. Of all ballots cast in the election, 24.29% were rejected. Ballots were rejected because signatures did not match and sections on the ballot designating that someone other than the voter was handling the ballot were left unfilled. A substantial number of ballots were left on the floor of an apartment building, while approximately two hundred uncounted mail-in ballots were found in a postal box located in the adjacent township. Shortly after the election results were tabulated, evidence emerged about an absentee ballot trafficking scheme involving at least four individuals, including two members running for City Council. Candidate Alex Mendez, current councilman Michael Jackson, Shelim Khalique, and Abu Razyen have now been charged with various felonies related to the alleged scheme. The judge ordered a new special election which was held in November 2020. Alex Mendez won by a nine-vote margin, despite the criminal voter fraud charges that are pending against him.

Source: https://herit.ag/3iXAPN9 , https://herit.ag/3f2iVaF, https://herit.ag/3BNsOmj

Dyon Herrera

Dyon Hererra, of Espanola, conspired with Laura Seeds to falsify absentee ballots in support of Seeds' husband's candidacy for mayor in 2016. Hererra forged the signatures of his grandparents on absentee ballots. The candidate that he casted the ballots in favor of won the race by two votes. Herrera was charged with conspiracy to violate the municipal election code of Espanola, a fourth degree felony, and pleaded guilty. He was sentenced to 18 months probation.

Source: https://herit.ag/3l1iAJf , https://herit.ag/3i9ub7o, Case no. D-117-CR-201800047

Laura Seeds

Laura Seeds, of Espanola, conspired with Dyon Herrera to falsify several absentee ballots in favor of Seeds' husband, a city councilman who was running for mayor in 2016. Seeds was charged with two counts of making false statements relative to the municipal election code, one count of conspiracy to violate the municipal election code, and ten counts of possession of another person's absentee ballot. Seeds was found guilty of two counts of making false statements relative to the municipal election code and two counts of possession of another person's absentee ballot, which are all fourth degree felonies. She was sentenced to six months of house arrest, followed by five years of supervised probation.

Source: https://herit.ag/3f4YnhM, Case no. D-117-CR-201800048,

Lauren Creekmore Peabody

Lauren C. Peabody, of Virginia Beach, worked as a campaign staffer for the GOP candidate in the 2nd Congressional District of VA. In that role, she signed off on petition signatures, that she did not witness, to get Shaun Brown, a Democrat, on the ballot as an Independent in order to take away votes from the Democratic nominee (her boss's main opponent). The signatures were forgeries of deceased individuals and former residents. She was charged with two counts of election fraud and pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of "willful neglect of election duty." She received a 12-month suspended sentence based on a year of good behavior and was ordered to pay a $1,000 fine.

Source: https://herit.ag/3BMDxh2

Chad Armstrong

Chad Armstrong, a convicted felon on probation, voted in the 2018 election despite being ineligible. He was charged with felony election fraud but pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor. He was sentenced to five days in jail.

Source: bit.ly/37HfjaT

Tess Alayna Bishop

Tess Bishop, of Salt Lake City, UT,voted "unlawfully and knowingly" in a Harper's Ferry municipal election where her father, Wayne Bishop, was elected mayor by a margin of 14 votes. Bishop was charged with one count of illegal voting, and pled guilty to the charge. She was sentenced to 3 days of incarceration, that could be served by completing 24 hours of community service, and ordered to pay all court fees.

Source: https://herit.ag/2TBAc30, https://herit.ag/3f296cQ

Elbert Melton

Elbert Melton, the former mayor of Gordon, illegally notarized two ballots, without witnesses present, during the 2016 election in which he was running for mayor. Melton won that race by only 16 votes. Melton was convicted on two counts of absentee ballot fraud, was removed from office, and was sentenced to serve one year in prison followed by two years of probation.

Source: https://herit.ag/3y8oU5f, https://herit.ag/3xcAQBQ, https://herit.ag/3zImZEW