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8 in central-city voting group charged (Milwaukee voter fraud)
The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel ^ | July 22, 2003 | By DAVE UMHOEFER

Posted on 07/22/2003 2:39:46 PM PDT by MediaMole

8 in central-city voting group charged

ACE workers accused of fraud in Holloway recall election

By DAVE UMHOEFER

dumhoefer@journalsentinel.com

Last Updated: July 22, 2003

A top official and seven workers with a central-city campaign group face felony charges for alleged fraud in a novel absentee-ballot drive conducted in the recall election won by Milwaukee County Board Chairman Lee Holloway, District Attorney E. Michael McCann announced Tuesday.

A 92-count criminal complaint alleges that Holloway's campaign benefited from widespread illegalities by the African-American Coalition for Empowerment (ACE) and its field workers, but says the investigation found no evidence that Holloway himself was aware of the fraudulent activities or participated in them.

Among those charged was ACE co-founder Vincent Knox, a prominent minority-voting rights activist in Milwaukee. Knox has acknowledged coordinating the unprecedented absentee-voting drive, in which ACE went door-to-door persuading hundreds of residents to allow absentee ballots to be sent to ACE's offices rather than to would-be voter's addresses.

ACE officials have said that workers then delivered the ballots to the requesters and acted as witnesses for the votes. The tactic, if done correctly, is legal under a loophole in state election law, but the new complaint alleges forged signatures, voting on behalf of non-existent people and voting from phony addresses.

"Numerous voters stated they did not sign the voter registration cards and/or absentee certificates filed in their names," the complaint alleges.

Some would-be voters were told by an ACE worker to vote for Holloway, the complaint says. Several of the people hired by ACE are linked to Holloway's recall campaign, according to records taken from ACE's offices in a raid by investigators, the complaint says. Holloway's campaign manager, Barbara White, runs ACE but said she took a leave of absence during the race. She was not charged.

The eight charged ACE workers, including Knox, acted as authenticating "witnesses" and authored forged voter signatures on at least five voter registration cards, 17absentee ballot requests, and 40 absentee ballot envelopes, which ACE submitted to the City of Milwaukee Election Commission, the complaint says.

Investigators were able to locate 19 of the 40 fraudulent absentee ballots witnessed by these individual defendants - and all 19 were votes for Lee Holloway.

McCann's office started its investigation after a Journal Sentinel story shortly before the election revealed details of the absentee drive. The district attorney's office challenged and sealed 96 ballots as potential criminal evidence. Witnesses were questioned this spring and summer during a secret John Doe court proceeding.

Holloway easily defeated challenger Yolanda Staples-Lassiter in the recall election, one of several spawned by the county's pension scandal.

All eight defendants were taken into custody Tuesday morning and were expected to appear in court later Tuesday or on Wednesday.

Complete coverage of this story will appear online later today and in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in the morning.


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Front Page News; Politics/Elections; US: Wisconsin
KEYWORDS: democrat; fraud; milwaukee
It must have been incredibly blatant for E. Michael McCann to avoid shoving it under the rug like every other vote fraud case in Milwaukee.
1 posted on 07/22/2003 2:39:47 PM PDT by MediaMole
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To: MediaMole
When we have no-paper-trail touch screen voting, other types of voter fraud will no longer be needed. It's a scary proposition.
2 posted on 07/22/2003 2:46:53 PM PDT by Freee-dame
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To: MediaMole
What state has the friendly democrat worker show up at a nursing home to run a bingo game with prizes, and won't you be a dear and register to vote and here's the person that you should vote for? Jeez, my memory is as good as someone that would vote democrat under those conditions.
3 posted on 07/22/2003 2:47:25 PM PDT by lelio
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To: lelio
Running a bingo game to get alzheimers patients to vote democrat isn't considered "wrong" by the DA's in Wisconsin.

Even the smokes for votes woman didn't get any more than a slap on the wrist. Vote fraud is accepted by Wisconsin's democratic establishment.

This as a special election is going in which the Democrat had his people call voters saying that Pro-Life Wisconsin had endorsed him. It was a blatant lie in a dirty campaign.
4 posted on 07/22/2003 2:57:07 PM PDT by MediaMole
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To: MediaMole
Notice a certain D-word missing from this entire story? Typical!
5 posted on 07/22/2003 3:00:16 PM PDT by Tall_Texan (http://righteverytime.blogspot.com - home to Tall_Texan's new column.)
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To: Tall_Texan
They will claim party politics have nothing to do with this since county supervisor is a "non-partisan" office. Ugh.

This group worked nonstop for Al Gore in 2000.
6 posted on 07/22/2003 3:06:31 PM PDT by MediaMole
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To: Tall_Texan
"Notice a certain D-word missing...?"

Their ambiguity speaks for itself.

7 posted on 07/22/2003 3:11:32 PM PDT by perfect stranger (You can't ping a user that doesn't exist.)
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To: sweetliberty
BUMP!!
8 posted on 07/22/2003 4:01:35 PM PDT by Budge (God Bless FReepers!)
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To: MediaMole
It's only 8 out of millions of 'Rat voting frauds, but it's a start.
9 posted on 07/22/2003 4:56:12 PM PDT by RJL
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To: MediaMole
The sweeping comes in the pre-trial settlement.

For those that have Adobe Acrobat, the text of the complaint is over here (courtesy jsonline.com).

10 posted on 07/22/2003 7:33:34 PM PDT by steveegg (Uday and Qusay are now reunited with their daddy; confirmation that Saddam is also there pending)
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To: steveegg
It's a start, but Holloway still won and got off scot free.
11 posted on 07/22/2003 7:58:28 PM PDT by afraidfortherepublic
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To: Tall_Texan
Notice a certain D-word missing from this entire story?

Some members of the group are Republicans and the group worked to elect a Pubbie county exec. Actually, the GOP better hope they don't get dragged into this further.

12 posted on 07/22/2003 8:14:18 PM PDT by mafree
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To: afraidfortherepublic
True, sadly. IIRC, McCan't is about the only politico left that hasn't given up his pension enhancers.
13 posted on 07/22/2003 9:29:50 PM PDT by steveegg (Uday and Qusay are now reunited with their daddy; confirmation that Saddam is also there pending)
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To: steveegg
Too bad about the Stevens Point Republican. The radio this AM said she lost by only about 130 votes.
14 posted on 07/23/2003 8:14:49 AM PDT by afraidfortherepublic
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