A man from Graettinger, who authorities claim is not a U.S. citizen but has legal residency in the country, has been accused of voter fraud, according to an announcement made by Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird’s office on Tuesday.
Two counts of election misconduct led to the detention of Irving Omar Ahumada Geronimo, 35, of Graettinger. On October 31, authorities charged him with fraudulently registering to vote and casting ballots in a Graettinger City Council and school board election on November 2, 2021.
According to the criminal complaint, Greattinger illegally signed a voter registration form under oath, claiming to be a US citizen, and then “fraudulently voted in that election, knowing himself not to be qualified to do so.”
First-degree election misconduct is a Class D felony punishable by up to five years in jail and a fine ranging from $750 to $7,500.
Bird’s office will prosecute the case, as it has sole jurisdiction over election crimes, according to her office.
Bird’s office has recently announced the second prosecution against a legal resident who is not a US citizen for allegedly voting illegally.
Jorge Oscar Sanchez-Vasquez of Marshalltown was arrested in September and accused of fraudulently registering to vote and participating in a July 16 special election for Marshalltown City Council. The Register has contacted his attorney for comment.
The prosecutions follow a Republican-led crackdown on noncitizen voting and allegations that Democrats were attempting to steal elections through noncitizen voting. However, there is no evidence of a widespread campaign to register noncitizens to vote throughout the United States.
Nonetheless, the issue has dominated Iowa elections this year, with Secretary of State Paul Pate instructing county auditors to challenge any ballots cast in the Nov. 5 general election by more than 2,000 people who reported to the Iowa Department of Transportation that they are not citizens.
People on the list Pate submitted to county auditors had to show proof of citizenship before their vote could be tabulated.
According to Palo Alto County Auditor Carmen Moser, five Palo Alto individuals were on a list of suspected noncitizen voters that Pate distributed to counties prior to this month’s general election. Moser informed the Register that only one of the five people who voted last week is a US citizen.