MANCHESTER, NH — City Clerk Matthew Normand has turned over city voting records to the state Attorney General’s Office after an investigation was prompted by an undercover video that suggests violation of voter conduct by two Bernie Sanders campaign staffers.
WMUR reports the records in question involve Hugo Palma, a campaign field director, and Donna Waterman, a campaign staffer, who both allegedly used 345 Cilley Road, a Sanders campaign field office, as their address.
In the video, Palma of Colorado explained that he was being housed in Warner by Sanders supporters since mid-2015, but chose to register to vote in Manchester. He also told the person filming him with a hidden camera that he was not voting in Colorado and could not, because it would constitute voter fraud.
Manchester City Clerk Matthew Normand confirmed Feb. 19 to WMUR that Palma and Waterman listed the Cilley Road address as their domiciles when they registered to vote in the first-in-the-nation primary.
Normand also confirmed to WMUR that he had checked and found no other instances of presidential campaign offices listed as domiciles among the city’s voter registrations.
The larger problem appears to be with New Hampshire’s voter requirements, which continue to be a topic of debate in Concord:
- This NHPR report looks at the question of “domicile” requirements in NH and how lawmakers are addressing residency questions around voting.
- On Feb. 18 Fosters.com reported the state Attorney General was investigating whether State Rep. Don Leeman, R-Rochester, had illegally voted in a district where he no longer resides.
Normand is in favor of a statewide electronic checklist to avoid duplicate voting.
“Electronic checklists and registration will not stop people from lying on their registration, but it will stop ‘precinct hopping’ while significantly reducing wait times at the polls,” Normand told WMUR. “This needs to happen in New Hampshire.”
Last week GOP Chair Jennifer Horn disseminated a press release linking to an initial video filmed with a hidden camera by Project Veritas, alleging irregularities at polling places. The Attorney General’s Office said they would investigate possible violations of NH state law in that instance, which remains under investigation as well.
In 2012 Project Veritas founder James O’Keefe came under scrutiny after a similar sting at NH polling places during the primary election.
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