The results of the 1993 mayoral election in Hialeah were voided by a Dade County judge after the discovery of several forged absentee ballots. The judge found that one of the candidates had a 2-to-1 advantage in absentee ballots, which he attributed to “overzealous” campaign workers at an elderly home in addition to several non-residents and mentally incompetent people voting. Florida. 1996. Election Overturned. Judicial Finding. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary
Edwin E. Garcia, a former lawmaker and Hartford Police Sergeant, pleaded no contest to three felony counts of absentee ballot fraud, tampering with a witness, and accepting an illegal campaign contribution. Garcia and his campaign workers systematically registered hundreds of young voters and furnished many with absentee ballots that they neither qualified for nor understood. He received a sentence of one year of house arrest. Connecticut. 1996. Fraudulent Use of Abs. Ballots. Criminal Conviction. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary
A 1993 special Pennsylvania state senate election was overturned by a federal district court judge due to absentee ballot fraud. This election was important as the senate was evenly divided and the winner would determine which party controlled the senate. Campaign workers for Democratic candidate William Stimson engaged in a massive absentee ballot scheme involving nearly 600 tainted ballots. After a surprising and extraordinary surge in absentee ballots seemed to result in a victory for Stinson, an investigation was undertaken. Stinson was indicted for his role in the scheme but was not convicted. Two campaign workers, Ramon Pratt and Barbara Landers, were convicted of misdemeanor offenses. Pennsylvania. 1994. Election Overturned. Fraudulent Use of Abs. Ballots. Judicial Finding. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary
Ramon Pratt, a Democrat campaign worker, was involved in a massive absentee ballot scheme during the 1993 Pennsylvania special state senate election. He pleaded guilty to 22 counts of election law violations for his role in the scheme. Pratt was sentenced to two years of probation for his involvement. Pennsylvania. 1994. Fraudulent Use of Abs. Ballots. Criminal Conviction. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary
Barbara Landers, a Democrat campaign worker, was involved in a massive absentee ballot scheme during the 1993 Pennsylvania special state senate election. She was convicted of 30 counts of misleading absentee voters, given a suspended sentence, and fined $1,000. Pennsylvania. 1994. Fraudulent Use of Abs. Ballots. Criminal Conviction. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary
Jacqueline Rogers was a campaign worker for James Holloway, a candidate for City Council. In the 1993 primary, she was paid $150 to dress up in a nurse’s uniform with a certified nurse nametag and solicit “emergency” absentee ballots from patients. She instructed at least one voter to cast her ballot for Holloway. The primary was ultimately decided in Holloway’s favor by just nine votes. The Connecticut Elections Enforcement Commission barred her from participating in political campaigns for five years. Connecticut. 1994. Fraudulent Use of Abs. Ballots. Civil Penalty. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary
Sandra Sewell was convicted on voter fraud charges stemming from her 1991 efforts to help Calvin McFarland fraudulently win re-election for a seat on the Wilkinson County Board of Supervisors. Sewell notarized fraudulent absentee ballots in the race. Sewell was convicted on eight counts related to the fraud and ordered to serve five years in prison and pay a $2,000 fine. Sewell, an attorney, was also disbarred. Mississippi. 1993. Fraudulent Use of Abs. Ballots. Criminal Conviction. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary
Calvin McFarland, an incumbent running for re-election to the Wilkinson County Board of Supervisors, was convicted on two counts relating to illegally signing absentee ballots. McFarland, a Democrat, lost in the primary, and after a lengthy series of runoffs and challenges, was indicted along with 13 other then-current and former county officials. McFarland was charged with six counts of falsely signing names to ballots, and was convicted of two. One of them charged McFarland with signing a ballot in the name of ‘Lottie James,’ and then falsely attesting that James’ signature was valid. For each charge, McFarland was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment and ordered to pay a $1,000 fine. One of the prison sentences was suspended. Mississippi. 1993. Fraudulent Use of Abs. Ballots. Criminal Conviction. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary
The Fresno Chapter of the Black American Political Association of California orchestrated a ballot harvesting scheme in order to win 13 seats on various Fresno County school boards. Through a scheme organized by Frank Revis, BAPAC received over 1,300 absentee ballots delivered to addresses provided by BAPAC, not those of the individual voters. Over 250 of those ballots were lost, while the rest were disqualified as containing invalid signatures or otherwise having been illegally cast. The California State Supreme Court overturned the results of the election due to fraud and tampering with absentee ballots. California. 1993. Election Overturned. Judicial Finding. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary
Three campaign supporters illegally submitted absentee ballots during the 1992 Hardee County sheriff election. Although a grand jury found that no criminal intent was involved, the election was thrown out and a new one was ordered. Florida. 1992. Election Overturned. Judicial Finding. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary
Curtis Mouning, a campaign volunteer for State Representative Mario Testa during the 1990 election, admitted to signing the names of five of his friends and family members to request absentee ballots to vote in the primary. He was ordered to pay a civil penalty to the Connecticut Elections Enforcement Commission in the amount of $500. Connecticut. 1991. Fraudulent Use of Abs. Ballots. Civil Penalty. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary
Ernest Newton, a former state senator, agreed to pay a civil penalty of $1,000 for assisting in filling out someone else’s absentee ballot. Newton illegally filled out and mailed an absentee ballot for Ada Crosby. The fraud occurred in the 1988 primary while Newton was a state senate candidate in the 124th District. Following his election, he was imprisoned after accepting a bribe, using campaign contributions for personal expenses, and failing to report improper income on his federal tax return. In 2015, Newton was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment for campaign finance violations stemming from having three campaign workers fraudulently sign donation cards in order for the campaign to reach the threshold to qualify for state matching funds. Connecticut. 1988. Fraudulent Use of Abs. Ballots. Criminal Conviction. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary
Project Westvote was a massive investigation by the FBI into endemic vote-buying operations in western North Carolina. The operation netted 41 convictions in counties throughout the western part of the state. North Carolina. 1986. Buying Votes. Criminal Conviction. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary
Vander Beatty, a former New York state senator, was convicted of multiple criminal charges, including forgery and conspiracy, in relation to election fraud. He led others in a scheme to forge hundreds of voter registration cards to challenge the result of the 1982 congressional primary that he lost. He was sentenced to 16 months in prison and fined $5,000. New York. 1983. False Registrations. Criminal Conviction. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary
A DOJ investigation of the Illinois election in 1982 estimated that 100,000 fraudulent ballots were cast in the gubernatorial primary. The investigation was tipped off by a party worker from Chicago’s 39th Ward who was upset by his precinct captain’s broken promise to award him a city job for his participation in the vote fraud scheme. The conspirators cast ballots for people who were elderly and disabled. The investigation resulted in 63 individuals being convicted, the largest voter fraud case in DOJ history. Illinois. 1982. False Registrations. Criminal Conviction. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary
In 1982, 27 individuals participated in an illegal scheme to boost Honolulu voter registrations for candidate Ross Segawa. Segawa was convicted on 10 counts of election fraud, criminal solicitation, and evidence tampering. Segawa served a year in prison and was expelled from law school. State Sen. Clifford Uwaine was convicted of conspiring to illegally register voters and served three months in jail; and Debra Kawaoka, an aide to Uwaine who also played a part in the false registration, served numerous weekends in prison. Brian Minaai and the other students each pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor. Hawaii. 1982. False Registrations. Criminal Conviction. Fraud Investigation. Report Summary