Washington auditor looks into letters

Washington County is investigating possible election misconduct in connection with its Board of Supervisors race, and officials said a person found responsible for the suspected violation could face sanctions or criminal charges.

This week, the Washington County Auditor's Office learned that an unknown person on an unknown date sent letters to residents in the county's 1st District, encouraging them to request an absentee ballot and help “elect supervisors who will actually listen to their constituents and stop wasting tax dollars.”

The letters, which include absentee ballot request forms, were specific in asking recipients to vote for Republican candidate Jack Seward in the June 5 primary, which pits him against Republican candidate Matthew Latcham for the seat. If Seward clears the first hurdle in the primary, he would face Democratic candidate Kay Chia in the general election on Nov. 6.

Seward could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

County Auditor Daniel Widmer told The Gazette that his office received two of the suspect letters in the mail Tuesday. Neither included a completed form requesting an absentee ballot, prompting Widmer to believe the letters were forwarded to his office because of the suspected violation.

On Wednesday, however, Widmer said the Auditor's Office received eight completed forms requesting absentee ballots, in the same provided envelopes that Tuesday's letters came in.

Widmer said his office “absolutely will send out those absentee ballots later today.”

“They are filled out correctly,” he said.

The anonymity of the letters poses the biggest problem, according to Widmer. Iowa Code requires published material designed to advocate the nomination, election or defeat of a candidate to include “an attribution statement disclosing who is responsible for the published material.”

“One of my duties is to maintain the integrity and honesty of each and every election, and that is what we're trying to do in this matter,” Widmer said. “It does negatively affect the integrity of this next election - in an adverse way.”

Widmer said his office is working with the county attorney's office to investigate the case. He's asking members of the public to come forward with information about who sent the letters.

“We're hoping they become aware of the fact that, in our opinion, they are violating a law and will take steps to rectify the situation,” he said.

The county Auditor's Office isn't looking to get the state involved at this time. But, Widmer said, if officials identify the sender, he or she could be sanctioned. Iowa Code states that fourth-degree election misconduct is a simple misdemeanor.