An election worker in Harris County, Texas has been charged with multiple felonies for his role in a fraud scheme that resulted in paper ballot shortages in Republican precincts during the 2022 midterms.
Darryl Blackburn, a Democrat, has been charged with six felonies over his role in rigging the election.
The charges were announced during a press conference by Democrat District Attorney Kim Ogg.
Ogg announced tampering and theft charges against Blackburn after his efforts ensured that there was a paper ballot shortage at 119 polling locations across Harris County.
There were insufficient paper ballots in many Republican precincts, the investigation found.
“We know this was a failure,” DA Ogg said.
“Mr. Blackburn not only stole thousands of dollars from Harris County in the sense that he lied on timesheets, but much more importantly, he stole individuals’ rights to vote a basic constitutional right in our democracy because people on both sides were delayed in their voting, halted in their voting, rerouted in their voting.”
Blackburn’s efforts ensured that there weren’t enough paper ballots at 119 Harris County polling elections on Election Day in 2022.
However, Ogg argues that the Democrat election worker had no intent to impact the outcome of the election.
Nevertheless, Ogg did acknowledge that Blackburn’s crimes did impact the outcome of the election.
The overwhelming majority of Election Day voters are Republicans.
The lack of paper ballots on Election Day means Republicans were disenfranchised.
“I do want to say that the investigation found no evidence of intent to impact the outcome of the election for either party,” Ogg said.
“But it is undeniable that there is a lot of evidence to show that Mr. Blackburn’s crime did impact the election.”
WATCH:
In November 2022, Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott called for an investigation into “widespread problems” with Harris County’s elections.
“I’m calling for an investigation into the widespread problems with the Harris County elections last Tuesday,” Abbott said.
“The allegations of election improprieties in our state’s largest county may result from anything ranging from malfeasance to blatant criminal conduct.”
I'm calling for an investigation into the widespread problems with the Harris County elections last Tuesday.
The allegations of election improprieties in our state's largest county may result from anything ranging from malfeasance to blatant criminal conduct.
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) November 14, 2022
“Voters in Harris County were frustrated by confusion and delays including missing keys, insufficient paper ballots in Republican precincts, staffing problems, and more,” Abbott added.
“I’m calling on the Secretary of State, the Attorney General’s Office, and the Texas Rangers to initiate investigations into allegations of improprieties in the way that the 2022 elections were conducted in Harris County.
“Voters in Harris County deserve to know what happened.
“Integrity in the election process is essential,” he added.
“To achieve that standard, a thorough investigation is warranted.”
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