School board election worker charged with trading cocaine and cash for votes

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last updated 10 January 2015

Authorities say a Donna, Texas, man bribed local citizens with either $10 or a "dime bag" of cocaine in exchange for their votes.

Francisco "Frankie" Garcia, 47, of Donna worked for unnamed candidates running for the Donna School Board in 2012, The Monitor reports. His indictment states that on or about Nov. 6, 2012, "Person B brought three voters to the polls to vote for candidates in the Donna School Board election. Garcia paid the voters for voting by dropping $30 into the car in which they were seated, through an open car window, after they voted."

Garcia was arrested last week in southern Illinois, and will appear in federal court on conspiracy and voter fraud charges next month. Garcia's not the only one accused of shady election dealings: Assistant U.S. Attorney James Leo said that three women who pleaded guilty to vote-buying earlier this year worked for the same candidates. The women told investigators they supplied voters with cash, beer, and cigarettes.

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.