Latino-rights activist Nativo Lopez charged with voter fraud

June 25th, 2009, 10:34 am ·
by Martin Wisckol, Politics reporter

(Three updates appear at the bottom of this item.)

Longtime Latino rights activist and former Santa Ana school board chairman Nativo Lopez has been charged with four felony counts of voter fraud and a warrant has been issued for his arrest, according to this announcement by Secretary of State Debra Bowen.

Bowen’s office worked in collaboration with the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office, which has charged Lopez with fraudulent voter registration, fraudulent document filing, perjury and fraudulent voting.

The charges stem from Lopez allegedly registering to vote using an office address in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles although he lived with his family in Orange County, according to Bowen’s office. He also allegedly cast an illegal ballot from Los Angeles in the 2008 presidential primary.

Lopez is national president of Mexican American Political Association and national director of Hermandad Mexican Latinoamericana, both of which are advocates for immigrant rights. In 1996, he attracted controversy for registering new citizens in the congressional district where Democrat Loretta Sanchez upset incumbent Bob Dornan.

A congressional investigation later found that some voters had cast ballots before their citizenship was finalized. The Orange County District Attorney’s Office investigated allegations that Lopez’s primary organization, then known as Hermandad Mexicana Nacional, was responsible for the improper registrations but no charges were filed.

Bail has been set at $10,000 for Lopez. I’ve got calls in to Lopez and will also find out whether he’s been picked up yet. I’ll update this item when I have more information.

UPDATE 1: The Orange County Registrar of Voters office tells me that Lopez was registered to vote in Santa Ana until Jan. 23, 2008, when he asked that his registration be canceled.

UPDATE 2: The Secretary of State’s Office received a tip on this, investigated, then gave its information to the L.A. County DA’s office, which filed charges, according to Nicole Winger of the Secretary of State’s Office. She also said that she’d heard the Lopez had turned himself him. I should be able to confirm that shortly.

UPDATE 3: Lopez served on the Santa Ana Unified School District Board of Trustees from 1997 until 2003, when 69 percent of voters casting ballots agreed that he should be recalled.

http://totalbuzz.freedomblogging.com/20 ... aud/18205/