Voter Fraud Convictions in Mississippi, 2016-2020

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	A. Conviction Details	B. Background	C. Potential Election Impact
1.	Election Year: 2017 Name: Andrew Grant Party Affiliation: Democrat[1]Secretary of State of Mississippi, “Official Recapitulation – Votes Cast in the Municipality of Canton, Mississippi on the 6th Day of June, 2017,” sos.ms.gov, June 14, 2017 Offense and Sentencing: Andrew Grant pleaded guilty on 8/5/2019 to “conspiracy to commit voter fraud” in relation to offenses committed in the 2017 Canton, Mississippi, municipal elections.[2]Erin Pickens, “Canton Alderman Pleads Guilty to Voter Fraud, Immediately Resigns,” wapt.com, August 5, 2019 Grant was sentenced on the same day to five years in prison, suspended for five years, plus five years of probation.[3]Erin Pickens, “Canton Alderman Pleads Guilty to Voter Fraud, Immediately Resigns,” wapt.com, August 5, 2019 and Waverly McCarthy, “Alderman Andrew Grant Pleads Guilty, Sentenced in … Continue reading	“A Canton alderman is now facing several charges following the ongoing investigation into voter fraud in the city. Ward 7 Councilman Andrew Grant is facing four counts of voter fraud and two counts of conspiracy to commit voter fraud. He was indicted last month by a grand jury. The indictment states that Grant paid at least one person to vote for him in the 2017 elections.”[4]WLBT, “Canton Alderman Facing Charges in Ongoing Voter Fraud Investigation,” wlbt.com, February 4, 2019 Case Notes: Case Number: Not Found	Type of Election: Municipal Party Affiliation: Democrat Theoretical Election Effect: No effect on Congressional or Presidential elections
2.	Election Year: 2017 Name: Courtney L. Rainey Party Affiliation: Party Affiliation is not tracked in Mississippi[5]Voters in Mississippi are not asked their party affiliation on their voter registration forms. Offense and Sentencing: Courtney L. Rainey was found guilty by a jury on 7/31/2019 of one count of voter intimidation in relation to offenses committed in the 2017 Canton, Mississippi, municipal elections; the jury was hung on one other count of voter fraud.[6]Maggie Wade, “Guilty Verdict for Courtney Rainey in Canton Voter Fraud Case,” wlbt.com, July 31, 2019 Rainey was sentenced on 9/24/2019 to 15 years in prison, with three years suspended in prison, plus five years of supervised probation on release.[7]Waverly McCarthy and Maggie Wade, “Courtney Rainey Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison,” wlbt.com, September 24, 2019 On 03/16/2021, the Court of Appeals of the State of Mississippi reversed the conviction and rendered a judgment of acquittal. However on 03/10/2022, Supreme Court of Mississippi reversed that decision and reinstated and affirmed the original judgement by the Madison County Circuit Court.	“[Courtney L.] Rainey, a former city of Canton employee, was convicted of witness intimidation in 2019. … At the heart of the matter was Rainey’s interaction with Emma Ousley. According to court records, Rainey helped Ousley register to vote and then gave her a ride to the polls during the 2017 municipal elections. She then gave Ousley $10 for lunch. In 2018, the Madison County District Attorney’s Office launched an investigation into potential voter fraud in Canton. Ousley testified at trial that Rainey ‘did not intimidate her but that Rainey asked her what she said to investigators.’ … She also told the court that Rainey had visited her apartment and her job after Ousley had met with investigators.”[8]Anthony Warren, “State Supreme Court Reverses Appeals Court Decision in Courtney Rainey Witness Intimidation Case,” wlbt.com, March 10, 2022 Case Notes: Courtney L. Rainey v. State of Mississippi Madison County Circuit Court Court of Appeals of the State of Mississippi: 2019-KA-01651-COA – Opinion Supreme Court of Mississippi: 2019-CT-01651-SCT – Opinion	Type of Election: Municipal Party Affiliation: Not Found Theoretical Election Effect: No effect on Congressional or Presidential elections
3.	Election Year: 2017 Name: Donnell Robinson Party Affiliation: Party Affiliation is not tracked in Mississippi[9]Voters in Mississippi are not asked their party affiliation on their voter registration forms. Offense and Sentencing: Donnell Robinson pleaded guilty on 6/24/2019 “one count of misdemeanor voter fraud” in relation to offenses committed in the 2017 Canton, Mississippi, municipal elections.[10]Maggie Wade, “Two Plead Guilty in Canton Voter Fraud Case,” wlbt.com, June 24, 2019 Robinson was sentenced on the same day to a one year suspended sentence, six months of probation, and a $250 fine.[11]Maggie Wade, “Two Plead Guilty in Canton Voter Fraud Case,” wlbt.com, June 24, 2019	“Donnell Robinson, a 52-year-old mentioned in the [Courtney L.] Rainey indictments, was himself indicted on two counts of voter fraud and two counts of voting by an unqualified person. He is accused of twice casting an absentee ballot in 2017 even though he was disqualified because of a 1995 conviction for receiving stolen property.”[12]Jeff Amy, “6 Accused of Election Misconduct in Central Mississippi,” apnews.com, December 6, 2018 Case Notes: Case Number: Not Found	Type of Election: Municipal Party Affiliation: Not Found Theoretical Election Effect: No effect on Congressional or Presidential elections
4.	Election Year: 2017 Name: Jennifer Robinson Party Affiliation: Party Affiliation is not tracked in Mississippi[13]Voters in Mississippi are not asked their party affiliation on their voter registration forms. Offense and Sentencing: Jennifer Robinson was “indicted on one count of voter fraud and one count of voting by an unqualified person for voting in the Ward 7 [2017] election even though she no longer lived there.”[14]Jeff Amy, “6 Accused of Election Misconduct in Central Mississippi,” apnews.com, December 6, 2018 In May 2019, Robinson was instructed to enter a Pre-Trial Diversion Program.[15]Maggie Wade, “Two Charged in Canton Voter Fraud Case Enter Pre-trial Diversion Program,” wlbt.com, May 21, 2019 She will have one year to complete the program and avoid a felony conviction.[16]Maggie Wade, “Two Charged in Canton Voter Fraud Case Enter Pre-trial Diversion Program,” wlbt.com, May 21, 2019	“Jennifer Robinson, of Canton, falsely registered for an absentee ballot and then voted in 2017 municipal elections. She was charged with multiple counts of voter fraud and voting by an unqualified person for voting in a precinct in which she no longer resided. As part of a plea deal, she was admitted to a pre-trial diversion program.”[17]Heritage Foundation, “Election Fraud Cases,” heritage.org, accessed on April 13, 2022 Case Notes: Case Number: Not Found	Type of Election: Municipal Party Affiliation: Not Found Theoretical Election Effect: No effect on Congressional or Presidential elections
5.	Election Year: 2017 Name: Valerie Smith Party Affiliation: Party Affiliation is not tracked in Mississippi[18]Voters in Mississippi are not asked their party affiliation on their voter registration forms. Offense and Sentencing: Valerie Smith pleaded guilty on 6/24/2019 “violation of voter registration statutes” in relation to offenses committed in the 2017 Canton, Mississippi, municipal elections.[19]Maggie Wade, “Two Plead Guilty in Canton Voter Fraud Case,” wlbt.com, June 24, 2019 Smith was sentenced on the same day one year of probation, a fine, and an investigative fee.[20]Maggie Wade, “Two Plead Guilty in Canton Voter Fraud Case,” wlbt.com, June 24, 2019	“Another former official has been charged with voter fraud in an unfolding investigation in a Mississippi town. Three indictments issued in January against retired Canton City Clerk Valerie Smith were unsealed this week. She’s charged with 15 separate felony counts of falsely claiming a voter had sworn a registration application before her when they did not. … Smith is the eighth person charged since December with misconduct in Canton’s 2017 elections.”[21]Associated Press, “More Charges in Voter Fraud Inquiry in Mississippi Town,” washingtontimes.com, February 7, 2019 Case Notes: Case Number: Not Found	Type of Election: Municipal Party Affiliation: Not Found Theoretical Election Effect: No effect on Congressional or Presidential elections
6.	Election Year: 2017 Name: Cary Johnson Party Affiliation: Party Affiliation is not tracked in Mississippi[22]Voters in Mississippi are not asked their party affiliation on their voter registration forms. Offense and Sentencing: Cary Johnson was indicted in December 2018 on three counts of voter fraud in relation to offenses committed during the Canton, Mississippi, 2017 municipal elections.[23]Justin Vicory and Jimmie E. Gates, “Court Records Say Former Canton Fire Chief Promised Beer for a Vote,” clarionledger.com, December 7, 2018 In May 2019, Johnson was instructed to enter a Pre-Trial Diversion Program.[24]Maggie Wade, “Two Charged in Canton Voter Fraud Case Enter Pre-trial Diversion Program,” wlbt.com, May 21, 2019 He will have one year to complete the program and avoid a felony conviction.[25]Maggie Wade, “Two Charged in Canton Voter Fraud Case Enter Pre-trial Diversion Program,” wlbt.com, May 21, 2019	“Cary Johnson … will have one year to complete a pretrial intervention program, which is available to people charged in nonviolent crimes. … Johnson is a former Canton police chief. An indictment accuses him of trying to influence a voter by promising beer, and of offering money to two others to sway their votes.”[26]Associated Press, “2 Could Avoid Felony Conviction in Canton Voter Fraud Case,” apnews.com, May 22, 2019 Case Notes: Case Number: Not Found	Type of Election: Municipal Party Affiliation: Not Found Theoretical Election Effect: No effect on Congressional or Presidential elections

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