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.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.