Democrats want voter fraud grand jury – Part One.
WISH TV
Updated: Sep 27, 2010 9:03 PM
A formal complaint was filed late this afternoon accusing GOP Secretary of State candidate Charlie White of voter fraud.
In documents filed in Hamilton County, Democrat Greg Purvis says White may have committed a felony and requests a grand jury investigation. He says that because White is the Hamilton County GOP chairman and Prosecutor Sonia Leekamp is also a Republican, there should also be a special prosecutor appointed.
It’s a tale that entered the national eye today with a story in the Huffington Post. White admitted serving on the Fishers Town Council after moving out of his district and also voted in the May primary while registered to his ex-wife’s home rather than his own condo.
On Indiana Week in Review, White became a Democratic target.
“I think the Republicans, frankly, ought to repudiate him,” said former State Democratic Chairman Ann DeLaney. “I really do. What you’re saying here is the election laws don’t matter.”
Because White is seeking to become the top election official in the state, a GOP representative acknowledged the gravity of the underlying issues.
“He has said that this was a mistake,” said former GOP Executive Director Luke Messer. “He did not intentionally do these things. It’s a very different story if he did.”
Purvis says White acted intentionally in order to keep his seat on the Fishers town council. White no longer holds that seat and is now in talks with the council about paying back his salary for the past seven months.
Democrats have a new political attack on White planned for tomorrow. On Indiana Week in Review, John Ketzenberger of the Indiana Fiscal Policy Institute explained his current circumstances this way: “It’s a very big problem for him, whether it’s a perception problem that people have or whether indeed it is a legal problem that he has going forward. This comes at a very bad time for him.”
A spokesman for White says he’s focused on issues that matter and not “his personal life.” The Indiana Republican Party continues to stand behind Charlie White. GOP spokesman Trevor Foughty calls White’s actions “embarrassing” but says they don’t disqualify him.
