Posted on 04/15/2008 12:30:06 PM PDT by SwinneySwitch
Texas AG office is investigating fraud allegations
Allegations of voter fraud and a poorly administered primary election in Jim Wells County played a part in dual rulings Monday from District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos calling for a new election to pick a Precinct 1 justice of the peace and Precinct 3 county commissioner.
It was unclear Monday when the new election will take place.
After Alice Mayor Juan Rodriguez lost his race for justice of the peace by nine votes to pharmacist and former Jim Wells County Democratic Party Chair Guadalupe "Lupe" Martinez and 14-year incumbent Oswald "Wally" Alanis lost his Precinct 3 county commissioner seat by two votes to opponent J.C. Perez III, an Alice Independent School District employee, Rodriguez and Alanis filed formal complaints alleging improprieties.
Alanis was in court April 4, when he and attorney Phil Westergren alleged a series of missteps by county election officials that they said improperly denied four of Alanis' supporters the right to cast ballots in his favor. The four testified that they either were not allowed to vote despite living in Precinct 3 or that they had been shifted erroneously into another precinct.
Rodriguez's case went to court Wednesday after he alleged several paid vote canvassers had worked to turn the election in Martinez's favor by improperly using mail-in ballots, including forging signatures, Rodriguez said Monday.
Martinez's attorney, Bobby Bourlon, said Monday he did not believe the testimony from the women accused of handling the mail-in ballots backed up Rodriguez's allegations. "I don't think anybody testified that they were working for Mr. Martinez," he said.
There is an ongoing investigation in Jim Wells County by the Texas Attorney General's office into allegations of voter fraud tied to the March 4 primary that is focused on mail-in ballots, county officials including District Attorney Joe Frank Garza and county elections administrator Pearlie Jo Valadez have said.
Neither Garza nor Valadez would say which county races are involved in the investigation, and Secretary of State officials did not return a phone call late Monday.
Judge Ramos, who cannot comment because the election contest cases are pending, had wide discretion in both cases. Her options ranged from turning the outcome to favor Alanis or Rodriguez, or both, or upholding the election results.
She found middle ground by calling for a new election, lawyers and candidates from both sides said Monday.
Valadez, the elections administrator who took the stand in both cases, said she is unsure how the new election will proceed or the time frame in which it must be conducted. She said she would contact the Texas Secretary of State's Office and the county's legal department to figure out what to do next.
Because there is no Republican challenger, the winner of the primary effectively wins the office.
Rodriguez said Monday he is ready to run again.
"I am very glad that the judge was able to see the facts for what they were and give the voters and residents another opportunity to voice their concerns and true feelings," he said. "This is bigger than me and any particular race."
Westergren said his client, Alanis, is pleased with the outcome and is preparing for the new election.
"We will work a little harder this time and make sure that people are in the right precinct," he said.
Bourlon said he, Perez and Martinez are mulling potential options, which include appealing the ruling to the Fourth Court of Appeals or taking part in the new election without contest.
Contact Jaime Powell at 886-3716 or powellj@caller.com
Shouldn't the Democrat Party pay for the "do over"?
isn’t it ever worth noting in the MSM that these types of problems NEVER happen in GOP controlled counties?? It’s only the dimocrat counties which can’t figure out how to count votes, can’t figure out who is a real voter and who is fictitious and weed out the fraudulently submitted votes.
Of course, on the dimocrat side the fraudulent voters are considered so valuable that they probably try to count them on the Census each decade whether they are real people or not.
Democrat voter fraud, as American as apple pie.
Politiqueras ping!
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