A former elected official in Philadelphia who accepted large payments from a political consultant to stuff ballot boxes for Democratic judicial candidates has pleaded guilty as part of a continuing federal investigation.
The Justice Department announced Thursday that Domenick J. DeMuro, 73, who was an election judge in South Philadelphia, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to deprive city voters of their civil rights by fraudulently stuffing ballot boxes in the 2014, 2015, and 2016 primary elections.
DeMuro, a judge for the 39th Ward, 36th Division, also pleaded guilty to violating the Travel Act, which forbids use of any facility in interstate commerce—in this case, cellphones—with the intent to promote certain illegal activity—in this case, bribery.
The Justice Department said the case is part of an ongoing investigation by the FBI and the Pennsylvania State Police.
The judge of elections is an elective office and a paid position in Pennsylvania municipalities responsible for supervising the local election process.
“DeMuro fraudulently stuffed the ballot box by literally standing in a voting booth and voting over and over, as fast as he could, while he thought the coast was clear,” U.S. Attorney William McSwain of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania said.
“This is utterly reprehensible conduct,” McSwain said. “The charges announced today do not erase what he did, but they do ensure that he is held to account for those actions.”
During his guilty plea hearing, DeMuro said an unnamed political consultant gave him directions and paid him money to add votes for certain Democrats who were running for judicial office. Their campaigns had hired the consultant.
DeMuro also admitted to casting illegal votes for other candidates for federal, state, and local offices at the consultant’s request.
Prosecutors said the political consultant solicited monetary payments from his clients in the form of cash or checks as “consulting fees,” then used some of the money to pay election board officials, including DeMuro, to tamper with the election results. DeMuro said payments ranged between $300 to $5,000.
In a press release, McSwain said:
Voting is the cornerstone of our democracy. If even one vote is fraudulently rung up, the integrity of that election is compromised. I want the public to know that this investigation is active and ongoing, and my office is taking every possible step that we can to ensure the integrity of the upcoming primary and general elections in the nine counties of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Citizens of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania should be confident of election integrity, said Capt. Leo Hannon, director of the special investigations division of the Pennsylvania State Police.
“As this investigation clearly illustrates, the Pennsylvania State Police will relentlessly pursue any breach of the sacred trust bestowed upon our public officials,” Hannon said in a prepared statement. “Our agency is proud to partner with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Attorney’s Office, and the United States Department of Justice as a whole to root out corruption at any level of our government.”
The probe is a positive step forward in prosecuting voter fraud, said former Justice Department lawyer J. Christian Adams, president of the Public Interest Legal Foundation, an election integrity group.
“Right now, other federal prosecutors are aware of cases of double voting in federal elections as well as noncitizen voting,” Adams said in a written statement, adding:
Attorney General William Barr should prompt those other offices to do their duty and prosecute known election crimes. Those who are considering election crimes should take note of U.S. Attorney McSwain’s work. Now, they have something to fear before they violate federal election laws.
Reprinted with Permission from - Daily Signal by - Fred Lucas
D eceitful
E xtremist
M achiavellian
O bstructive
C ontentious
R adical
A nti-American
T roglodytic
S elf-serving Sycophants
Good Lord, you people are such puppets. Every time Trump comes up with some new conspiracy theory,, you jump right on it. FOOLS. Hope your strings don’t break some day,, cause he wont be there to help you.
Did you read the article? Trump was not in the picture in 2014 and 2015…so who’s really the puppet fool who believes everything the dems tell you?
THIS IS AN OUTRAGE! WE, THE PEOPLE, WILL NOT STAND FOR THIS VOTER FRAUD BY THE DEMOCRATS! THEY GOT AWAY WITH IT IN THE 2018 MIDTERMS. THEY ARE WELL KNOWN CHEATERS. THAT’S THE ONLY WAY THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN!! WHY ISN’T THIS ELECTION JUDGE BEHIND BARS?? ARE YOU KIDDING ME?? IF HE WAS A REPUBLICAN, HE WOULD BE HUNG IN THE CITY SQUARE FOR THIS!! WE ARE SICK AND TIRED OF GIVING LIBERALS A PASS AND WE’RE NOT GOING TO TAKE IT ANY MORE! STARTING WITH HILLARY CLINTON AND BARRY SOETORO! THEY GOT AWAY WITH MURDER!! SOMEBODY BETTER DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!! WARNING: WE’RE CIRCLING THE WAGONS!!
Seems like we need to start shooting crooked judges who turn these criminals loose when they appear before them
when these criminals commit crimes again, the judge should be considered an accomplice to that crime.
I am so glad we caught the ONLY one. Also, who paid him? follow the chain up. If he does not talk, he goes to jail until he does.
In PA – just received my mail in ballot. Print on instructions is small and separate. So, I used a black pen and filled it in. Then I saw the separate sheet and it said it had to be a medium point black pen so the machine could count it. Good way to disallow ballots, don’t ya think! I’m going to go to the poll and vote instead.
Since you requested a mail-in ballot, your vote in person will be “provisional.” That means that if you didn’t mail the ballot back, they may eventually count your in-person ballot. You may want to call your board of elections and ask them about voting in person, once you have requested a mail-in ballot.
Why the coverup regarding the consultant? That business should be shut down and the leaders of it thrown in jail. Follow the money. Who were the candidates that paid the consultant?
This is how democrats cheat all the time
Ya right let’s have mail in votes! NOT joke this is how Democrat chest all the time.
I agree but it shouldn’t stop with DeMuro. Find and prosecute the source of the money.
Greetings One and All,
1. As for “Mail In Voting Ballots”, and the real potential for not having “Genuine” validation of who, or whom is/has voted; And whether or not the mail in voter ballot has been cast by an “Actual American Citizen”?!
2. Fraudulent activity, of the mail in voter ballot system, has a few more twists of the Federal Criminal nature and scope. When a fraudulent voter ballot is placed in the USPS mail box; There are clearly written Federal Mandates, which identify, that when the USPS is utilized to tender the movement of a “Fraudulent Voter Ballot”, then those who would go forth with committing “Fraud”, by using the USPS, have Yet another set of Regulations, which are that of the U.S. Postal Service; For which, those who commit fraud by mail shall be “Criminally Charged” by the U.S. Postal Service Investigators, as well as the Federal Government!,
3. The question which has been asked many times, with regard to the “Follow Through” measures, of not allowing for those who have been “Identified” as having committed voter ballot fraud at “ALL” levels within our country; Shall be “Criminally Charged” by the Federal Government, as well as the “Criminal Charges” which the U.S. Postal Service brings forth against those who commit “Fraud”, by utilizing the U.S. Postal Service system, and said systems “Mail” processing and delivery, of the fraudulent mail in voter ballot(s)!. The follow through, shall indeed happen, especially when U.S. Postal Service Regulations have been violated, which “Is A Crime”, punishable by many years in Federal Prison, hefty “Fines”, and “Confiscation” of property, “Real Property”, and, “Stock Piled Monies Off Shore”, in order to fore-fill the requirement of the monetary fines, as set forth during the Federal Court Proceedings!.
It is very interesting that on researching this story, there are absolutely NO photographs of DeMuro in any of the articles written.
And how do they stop illegal aliens from voting, which they do, why do democrats provide outrageous benefits to illegals and protect them more than citizens? It is vote buying, same as allowing drivers licenses and voter registration attached to license–all they do is check it off. States thre are penalties for lying, but who enforces the penalties or cares? If ID is required on mail-in voting, it is not a birth certificate, it is a bill with their name–what kind of identification is that since no way to know if legal citizen or illegal alien. No one seems to care any more about illegals voting….there are monetary fines if caught but who in what states enforce these laws?
Unless the MSM broadcasts this everywhere it will have little effect in future elections and we know the MSM won’t broadcast it.
This comes as no surprise and should serve as a giant warning about mail voting. Since you can register to vote by mail the only control is when you show up in person to vote. If you never have to show up how would election officials know who is really casting the ballot. My own opinion is that if we go to mail in voting in a big way get ready for socialism. Bad idea
Question for others: Would Mail-in ballots prevented this ??? or could that idiot get hold of those also. In most states, mail in ballots are sent to all registered voters & they have to sign & mail back in.
Except, your political affiliation is right on the back of return envelope with your signature, etc. And, how do you know that your vote is “counted” or falsely stated as “counted” and dumped. There is no way to know how fair Boards of Election are in partisan areas, especially democrats. MD is mostly democrat and I am registered Republican…we are set up for mail-in primary 6/2 and it states in information that you can check online with your ID# to see if your vote counted–how can I truly be sure when my affiliation is right on back of envelope; sorry, I do not trust my vote is important. Now, we can go to vote but they are making the locations limited and few and far between….I smell a rat in Maryland and Montgomery County!
Given that the person is aware it is illegal, what would stop him from registering for other people and then mailing in those ballots?
And in PA if you don’t use the specified type of pen, the scanner can’t count your vote. Interesting, isn’t it….
Maybe this makes Mail-in ballots look better than voting in person. I had no idea that one person could stuff the ballot box like this. This guy should go to jail & not get a pardon from President someday
This year the state wants us to vote by mail. We received our ballots and then the wife was notified that her signature didn’t match the records. We will vote in person and hope our vote counts. The paper ballot can’t be trusted because a human must count it. I trust a secure machine. SECURE.
Just what is the punishment for voter fraud? I never hear what happens to these despicable people, i.e. the person in Florida that had been doing this for years. In my opinion these lowlifes should not only be imprisoned but should never again be allowed to vote or be anywhere near a voting booth.
It’s too bad that 1/2 of the other offices are also corrupt, and it seems like there is very little follow through on these subjects.
Just follow through….no one seems to ever pay for their crimes. I bet that even this story will not have justice served at the end of the day. It’s nice that McSwain has this lovely quote on his record but it means nothing without real penalties attached to it. The only way to make it stop is to make the punishment so severe that it changes behavior. That’s why tort reform shouldn’t happen! Jail is how you stop people and huge amounts of money is how you stop big corporations. Or both. Since we cannot appeal to higher moral standards, this is the only way. Just wait and see. I wish I could have hope….