Voter signature fraud allegations hit unprecedented levels in Arizona campaigns

Show Caption Hide Caption The Gaggle: Theranos, fraudulent petitions and immigration reform The Arizona Republic's politics team discusses immigration reform, Theranos and fraudulent signatures in the Legislative District 28 Senate race.

Accusations of pervasive forgery on candidate nomination petitions have spread to multiple Arizona campaigns, from two statehouse races to a primary contest for U.S. Congress.

Elections officials and political consultants say such widespread accusations of voter-signature fraud are unprecedented in recent state history.

The controversy came to light two weeks ago when The Arizona Republic reported that dozens of voters said their names were forged on petitions for Mark Syms, an independent running for state Senate.

Voters said their names and supposed signatures were listed without their consent or knowledge. One couple was in Scotland at the time they supposedly signed, another man was in California. Many supposed signatories contacted by The Republic had never heard of Mark Syms.

Since that time, accusations of forgery have been leveled in at least two other campaigns, both of which used some of the same signature collectors who did work for Syms' campaign.

MORE: Attorney general says his mother's name was forged on candidate's petition

In addition to Syms, opponents have raised concerns about possible forgery on petitions for Ray Martinez, a Democrat running for state Senate, and Sandra Dowling, a Republican running for Congress.

As many as 1,400 voters' signatures were allegedly fabricated across the three campaigns, according to lawsuits. The deadline to challenge ballot signatures was June 13.

'What I see is pretty troubling'

Dowling narrowly survived a ballot challenge. Martinez was removed from the ballot, partially due to signature discrepancies. Meanwhile, Syms' case is pending.

Given the magnitude of alleged forgery, the situation could trigger a criminal fraud investigation. It's a felony to knowingly forge a document for filing with a government agency.

"What I see is pretty troubling," said Eric Spencer, state elections director for the Arizona Secretary of State's Office.

In Syms' case, at least half of his signatures are possibly forged. County elections determined 1,176 are invalid because the handwriting does not match signatures on voter records.

That revelation led Arizona Republican Party Chairman Jonathan Lines to call for Syms to exit the race Thursday.

"It is time for Mark Syms to end this sad and vindictive charade," Lines said in a prepared statement. "Voter fraud is a serious problem, and this case may represent the most egregious example of voter fraud in Arizona history."

Syms' campaign declined to comment Thursday, but he has previously called himself the "victim of fraud" on the part of a company hired to gather some of his signatures.

While it's typical to see a dozen or more challenges in an election year, the 2018 election cycle has prompted grievous complaints.

For starters, there are more ballot complaints overall, due in part to a surge in the number of candidates. In 2016, for example, there were only 12 ballot challenges in statewide, legislative and federal races, according to the secretary of state.

This year, 45 ballot challenges were filed at the state level. At least 17 candidates have withdrawn or been thrown off the ballot so far.

MORE: First-time candidates flood races for Arizona Legislature

The outcomes will determine who is on the ballot for voters in the Aug. 28 primary and Nov. 6 general election.

Arizona requires candidates collect a minimum number of registered voter signatures to get on the ballot. Usually campaigns get kicked off for technical reasons or for having signatures from people who aren't registered to vote, don't live in the district or belong to a different political party.

But this year, three candidates have been accused of submitting petitions that contain outright phony signatures to help them clear the ballot hurdle.

"I don't know how to explain it," Spencer said. "I don't know if less reputable firms are being used. It's more prevalent this election cycle, and that's why it's time that we crack down on this."

Criminal investigation possible

Several campaigns accused of potential forgery appear to have used a common petition-gathering company to help collect their signatures.

Political candidates regularly hire outside companies to gather signatures for them.

Many of the signatures in question were collected by three individuals who listed their names as Clifford Curry, Eric Dwayne Pearson and Alicia JoAnn Smith, according to the forms.

All three also list their address as a homeless shelter in downtown Phoenix.

The Republic was unable to locate Curry, Pearson or Smith. Attempts to find them included calling phone numbers associated with their names, messaging social media accounts and leaving messages for all three at the homeless shelter.

Two campaigns, Syms and Dowling, said they hired a signature-collecting firm owned by Larry Herrera, a school board member in the Washington Elementary School District in north Phoenix and Glendale. He also ran for Legislature but dropped out after forgery allegations involving his campaign surfaced.

Herrera hasn't responded to repeated requests for comment. He blocked a reporter who sent a him a Facebook message seeking comment about his role in Syms' campaign.

The Arizona Attorney General's Office, through its criminal and civil divisions, is already reviewing a complaint regarding potential forgery in Herrera's own campaign for the Legislature.

Herrera ran for state Senate in north Phoenix but dropped out earlier this year after elections officials said he submitted invalid forms seeking public financing for his race, including forms with signatures from voters who are dead.

It's unclear if the other accusations of forgery on candidate petitions will trigger a separate criminal probe.

Spencer, the state elections director, said the decision to forward the issue to law enforcement is in the hands of Maricopa County Recorder Adrian Fontes, whose office is tasked with reviewing the questionable signatures.

"I think something is going to come of it," Spencer added.

Fontes said his office is reviewing the issue. He said his staff has been working around the clock, until midnight most nights, to verify petitions in 52 ballot challenges filed at the county level.

"We will be taking all allegations of potential fraud with the amount of seriousness that they deserve," Fontes said. "I really can't comment beyond that."

Lines, the Republican chairman, said authorities "must get to the bottom of who exactly was responsible for over 1,000 fraudulent signatures being filed."

MORE: Voters say their signatures were forged on AZ Senate candidate's petitions

"This is a criminal act and the perpetrators must be held to account," he said in a prepared statement.

The three lawsuits allege varying degrees of signature fraud, but all include several of the same players:

Mark Syms, state Senate candidate

Signatures submitted: 2,158 (1,250 required); State elections officials recently updated Syms' total signature number, correcting a previous count.

Number invalid per Maricopa County review: 1,675.

Allegations of forgery: After questions about Syms' signatures were reported in the press, an opponent filed a lawsuit accusing him of submitting at least 914 forged signatures.

Syms, an independent, is running for state Senate in Legislative District 28, which encompasses parts of north-central Phoenix, Arcadia, Biltmore and Paradise Valley.

The lawsuit argues other signatures are invalid because they lack addresses, actual dates, legible names or otherwise don't meet legal requirements.

KWOK: Note to Mark Syms — Revenge is best served outside the election system

Who collected signatures: Most of Syms' signatures in question were collected by Curry, Pearson and Smith, who are the target of forgery accusations in the lawsuit against Syms.

A fourth circulator, listed as "Anthony Garcia," is allegedly an impersonator, the lawsuit claims. Anthony Garcia is a prominent signature collector, but many of Syms' petitions listed an Anthony Garcia with a different home address and with a forged signature of the real Garcia, the lawsuit says.

Syms, a prominent doctor, has said he is the "victim of fraud" on the part of a signature-collecting firm he hired to gather his petitions. His campaign said he hired Larry Herrera to collect signatures.

Syms has not elaborated on his dealings with Herrera, saying he will make his case in court. A trial is scheduled for Friday afternoon.

Ballot status: On Thursday, county elections officials released findings of their review of Syms' signatures. The county determined that 1,675 (78 percent) of his 2,158 signatures were invalid.

Nearly 1,200 of the invalid signatures were rejected because the signatures did not match signatures on voter records. Syms now has 483 valid signatures; he needs 1,250 to qualify for the ballot.

MORE: Lawsuit: 'Extensive and pervasive petition fraud' with candidates' signatures

Ray Martinez, state Senate candidate

Signatures submitted: 734 (309 required).

Number invalid per county review: 420; judge threw out additional 98.

Allegations of forgery: Opponents filed a lawsuit accusing Martinez of submitting a host of fraudulent petitions. The suit includes sworn affidavits signed by 35 voters who said they never signed Martinez’s petitions, despite their names and signatures appearing on his forms.

Martinez, an incumbent representative, is running for state Senate in the Democratic primary for Legislative District 30. The district spans parts of west Phoenix and Glendale.

The lawsuit disputes 429 of Martinez’s signatures for a variety of reasons, including that many voters don't live in the district.

Who collected signatures: According to the lawsuit, Curry forged the signatures of the 35 voters who said they didn't sign their names. It also notes suspicious patterns on the petitions sheets gathered by Curry, including "handwriting similarity throughout his sheets." Pearson and Smith also collected signatures for Martinez

It's unclear if Martinez hired Herrera's firm to gather signatures. Martinez didn't return repeated requests for comment; his attorney declined to comment about the case,

Ballot status: A Maricopa County Superior Court judge removed Martinez from the ballot Wednesday. County elections officials determined 420 of Martinez's 734 signatures are invalid, including 105 where the signatures do not match signatures on voter records.

That left Martinez a razor-thin cushion, five more signatures than the 309 required to get on the ballot. But the judge also invalidated 98 signatures because the sheets didn't list the elected office he's seeking. Martinez's attorney wouldn't say if he plans to appeal.

Sandra Dowling, U.S. House candidate

Signatures submitted: 3,006 (1,713 required).

Number invalid per county review: 1,068.

Allegations of forgery: A lawsuit filed by political opponents sought to challenge the legality of many of Sandra Dowling's signatures — both for the typical reasons and due to the suspicion of forged voter signatures.

Dowling is running to represent Congressional District 8 in the U.S. House of Representatives, challenging incumbent Rep. Debbie Lesko in the Republican primary. The district spans western parts of the Phoenix metro.

But Dowling is set to remain on the ballot. The lawsuit against her was withdrawn Wednesday after county elections officials reviewed her signatures, though it still presented findings of potential signature fraud.

The lawsuit contended many of these signatures had "pervasive circulator fraud" and were thus invalid.

Of the 1,402 challenged signatures, 1,068 were found to be invalid; 179 of those signatures were invalid because the signatures did not match signatures on voter records. Many of the signatures found invalid for this reason appeared on pages collected by Curry. Dowling's campaign, however, disputes that forgery was a concern.

Frank Thorwald, her campaign adviser, said he thinks the county's review was rushed and therefore inaccurate, saying they invalidated the signatures of voters whom the campaign knows.

"We didn't find (forgery) when we went through the stuff," Thorwald said. "We didn't see that."

Who collected signatures: Again, Curry (the circulator in other campaigns) was a primary circulator, collecting more than 220 of Dowling's total signatures. The lawsuit claimed many signatures collected by Curry are forgeries given patterns of "consecutively numbered, or nearly consecutively numbered, addresses" all written in the same handwriting.

As in Syms' case, the lawsuit against Dowling also called into question "pervasive circulator fraud" involving potential impersonation of Garcia. The lawsuit claimed several sheets were circulated by the real Garcia, but dozens of others were from an "Anthony Garcia" whose listed address does not appear to exist.

Dowling confirmed she hired Herrera to help collect signatures, and emphasized that the county found she had enough valid signatures to run.

Ballot status: Dowling submitted a total of 3,006 signatures. To appear on the ballot for the Republican primary in this race, candidates had to collect a minimum of 1,713 signatures.

Despite concerns about potential forgery, county elections officials found Dowling had 225 more signatures than needed to stay on the ballot. Opponents then withdrew the lawsuit.

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