This just in as Brad is headed over to the FOXNews studios. Yesterday the LA Times reported on the Republican voter registration outfit who had apparently been illegally changing thousands of registrations from
Democratic to Republican.
Last night the head of that GOP backed group, Mark Anthony Jacoby of Young Political Majors (YPM), was arrested by the
California State Election Fraud Taskforce and Oxnard CA Police.
According to CA SOS Debra Bowen's press release, Jacoby himself had committed voter registration fraud.
Bowen's press release, just out, follows in full...
DB08:100
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Kate Folmar
October 19, 2008 (916) 208-6521
Secretary of State Debra Bowen Announces
Arrest of Man Charged with Voter Registration Fraud
SACRAMENTO – The owner of a signature-gathering firm that works across California was arrested in Ontario today on
suspicion of committing voter registration fraud, Secretary of State Debra Bowen announced.
Mark Anthony Jacoby, who owns the firm known as Young Political Majors (YPM), was arrested after allegedly registering
himself to vote, once in 2006 and again in 2007, at an address where did not live. An investigation by the Secretary of
State’s Election Fraud Investigation Unit revealed that Jacoby twice registered to vote at the address of a childhood
home in Los Angeles although he no longer lived there.
The Secretary of State’s fraud unit and the Ontario Police Department arrested Jacoby near an Ontario hotel just before
midnight Saturday. An arraignment date has not been scheduled yet.
“Voter registration fraud is a serious issue, which is why I vigorously investigate all allegations of elections fraud,”
said Secretary Bowen, California’s chief elections officer. “Where there’s a case to be made, I will forward it to law
enforcement for criminal prosecution.”
For his business, Jacoby traveled California and a number of other states collecting petition signatures and registering
voters. Under state law, signature-gatherers must sign a declaration stating that they are either registered to vote in
California or that they are eligible to do so. Jacoby allegedly registered to vote at his childhood address to meet this
legal requirement.
Under California law, it is a felony punishable by up to three years in prison to register yourself when you are not
entitled to vote and it is perjury to provide false information on a voter registration card.
On October 3, the Public Integrity Unit of the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office charged Jacoby with four
felonies: two counts of voter registration fraud and two counts of perjury. A warrant was issued for his arrest and bail
was set at $50,000.
“This arrest wouldn’t have been possible without the hard work of the Ontario Police Department and Los Angeles District
Attorney Steve Cooley’s office,” Secretary Bowen said. “I thank them both.”
The Secretary of State’s Election Fraud Investigation Unit helps maintain the integrity of the electoral process by
investigating allegations of election and voter fraud in California. Potential Elections Code violations brought to the
unit’s attention are thoroughly investigated and referred to law enforcement officials for prosecution when there is
sufficient evidence of wrongdoing. The Secretary of State’s office does not disclose information about the status of
ongoing criminal investigations, but the information from a case that results in a criminal complaint filed by a county
or state prosecutor is a public record.
Anyone who has witnessed a violation of the California Elections Code is encouraged to contact the Secretary of State’s
Election Fraud Investigation Unit at (800) 345-VOTE or http://www.sos.ca.gov/el...ions/elections_fraud.htm.
*************
ENDS
-- John Gideon Co-Executive Director VotersUnite.Org www.votersunite.org
"To encourage citizen ownership of transparent, participatory democracy." The Creekside Declaration March 22, 2008