STERLING HEIGHTS (WWJ) - A 27-year-old former candidate for Sterling Heights City Council is facing a slew of charges after authorities say he forged signatures on absentee ballot applications.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced 18 charges against Paul Manni, 27, of Sterling Heights for election fraud after an investigation by the Bureau of Elections (BOE).
Manni was arraigned August 5 on the following counts:
• Nine counts of forging a signature on an absent voter ballot application, five-year felonies
• Nine counts of making a false statement on an absent voter ballot application, 90-day misdemeanors.
Nessel's office said Manni caught the suspicions of the City Clerk after he personally dropped off 50 absentee voter applications with his signature and indicated he was delivering them at the voters' request.
The Clerk's office contacted nine of the voters to verify Manni's story and found that each of the nine people they contacted did not submit a request for an absentee ballot.
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The BOE was brought in to investigate and those findings were forwarded to the AG's office.
Officials clarified that no absentee ballots were submitted to any voters who had applications submitted by Manni.
“These charges prove the state’s signature matching standards and other election security checks and balances catch instances of wrongdoing, prompt thorough investigations and result in appropriate action,” Nessel said. “I appreciate our ongoing partnership with the BOE to root out attempts to undermine our elections.”
Manni is due back in court August 18 for a probable cause conference at 1 p.m.
Nessel's office said accusations of voter fraud are first investigated by local police or the BOE after they are first reported.
Investigations elevate to the state police or the AG's office if evidence of criminal activity is uncovered.
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