Last week, the wife of a GOP official was convicted in a length voter fraud scheme that spanned the entirety of 2020. Donna Brydges, the wife of GOP chairperson Rob Brydges, was charged with three misdemeanors and one felony related to election tampering and falsifying election documents. The case serves as a reminder that voter fraud is a very real occurrence in the US and that those perpetrating such schemes often have political ties.
According to court documents, Donna Brydges was involved in a scheme to fabricate voter registration applications and make thousands of unnecessary calls to potential voters in order to confusingly spread misinformation about voting regulations. She also submitted a false-name ballot which was never counted and presented forged title documents in an attempt to register multiple people at the same address.
The Republican Party of Virginia made a statement after the conviction, expressing its commitment to the integrity of the election process and saying that they would take all necessary steps to ensure that everyone’s voice is heard. The statement also noted that the fraud occurred before Ms. Brydges was appointed to her current party role.
Despite the conviction serving as a warning that issues with election integrity still exist, the judge overseeing the case made it clear that he felt that the matters the Brydges had been convicted of weretoo minor to warrant jail time or extended periods of probation. As such,Instance, Donna Brydges was sentenced to three years of probation with 10 days of her sentence already served.
The conviction follows a flurry of allegations of voter fraud from politicians on the right as well as a multitude of lawsuits from the Trump campaign in an effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. Though some of the claims of fraud have come to light, the Brydges case is a reminder that fraudulent voting practices are real and concerning. It remains to be seen whether other similar schemes will arise or be actively stopped in 2021.
Last week, the wife of a GOP official was convicted in a length voter fraud scheme that spanned the entirety of 2020. Donna Brydges, the wife of GOP chairperson Rob Brydges, was charged with three misdemeanors and one felony related to election tampering and falsifying election documents. The case serves as a reminder that voter fraud is a very real occurrence in the US and that those perpetrating such schemes often have political ties.
According to court documents, Donna Brydges was involved in a scheme to fabricate voter registration applications and make thousands of unnecessary calls to potential voters in order to confusingly spread misinformation about voting regulations. She also submitted a false-name ballot which was never counted and presented forged title documents in an attempt to register multiple people at the same address.
The Republican Party of Virginia made a statement after the conviction, expressing its commitment to the integrity of the election process and saying that they would take all necessary steps to ensure that everyone’s voice is heard. The statement also noted that the fraud occurred before Ms. Brydges was appointed to her current party role.
Despite the conviction serving as a warning that issues with election integrity still exist, the judge overseeing the case made it clear that he felt that the matters the Brydges had been convicted of weretoo minor to warrant jail time or extended periods of probation. As such,Instance, Donna Brydges was sentenced to three years of probation with 10 days of her sentence already served.
The conviction follows a flurry of allegations of voter fraud from politicians on the right as well as a multitude of lawsuits from the Trump campaign in an effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. Though some of the claims of fraud have come to light, the Brydges case is a reminder that fraudulent voting practices are real and concerning. It remains to be seen whether other similar schemes will arise or be actively stopped in 2021.
