7 Charged in WA Voter Reg Fraud Case
Seven people were charged today in what officials say is the biggest voter-registration fraud case ever brought in Washington state. The seven allegedly are responsible for submitting nearly 2,000 fictitious registrations, but the case reportedly involves lazy employees seeking to reduce their workload rather than an attempt to influence election outcomes.
The seven, all workers for the ACORN national community group, allegedly are responsible for filling out and submitting 1,762 fraudulent registration forms. Most were completed by six canvassers sitting at the downtown Seattle Public Library, using information from telephone directories, reports the Seattle Times. A supervisor was also charged in the felony case with providing false information.
“It appears that a handful of temporary workers were trying to get paid for work they hadn’t actually done,” says ACORN President Maude Hurd in a written statement. “While we don’t think the intent or the result of their actions was to allow any ineligible person to vote, these employees defrauded ACORN and imposed a burden on the time and resources of registrars and law enforcement.”
ACORN, which stands for Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, has agreed to reimburse King County officials for $25,000 in investigative costs, and improve worker training.
