Voter Fraud Convictions in Alabama, 2016-2020

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	A. Conviction Details	B. Background	C. Potential Election Impact
1.	Election Year: 2020 Name: Alyse Fowler Party Affiliation: Not Found[1]According to the “Register to Vote / Update Your Information” webpage of the Alabama Secretary of State, “applicants for voter registration do not declare a political party affiliation when … Continue reading Offense and Sentencing: Alyse Fowler pleaded guilty on November 8, 2022, to providing false voter information in relation to offenses committed during the August 2020 Elba Municipal Election in Alabama.[2]Richard Everett, “Elba Attorney Set to Enter Guilty Plea,” wdhn.com, October 19, 2019 Fowler was sentenced to one year of unsupervised probation, 50 hours of community service and $1,000 in fines and court costs.[3]Ken Curtis, “Elba Attorney Fined; Community Service Ordered in Voter Fraud Case,” wtvy.com, November 9, 2022	“An Elba attorney who pleaded guilty to voter registration fraud will perform 50 hours of community service, but she won’t be jailed. Alyse Fowler must also pay $1,000 in fines, court costs, and is placed on unsupervised probation for one year. A six-month jail sentence was suspended. As part of her plea agreement, the Alabama Attorney General’s Office promises to pursue no additional charges against her. Fowler admitted she voted illegally in Elba’s 2020 municipal election when she claimed to live in Coffee County, though she resided in Covington County.”[4]Ken Curtis, “Elba Attorney Fined; Community Service Ordered in Voter Fraud Case,” wtvy.com, November 9, 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
2.	Election Year: 2016 Name: Elbert Melton, Jr Party Affiliation: Non-Partisan[5]Municipal elections are nonpartisan, according to Assistant Legal Counsel, Alabama Secretary of State’s Office response on August 10, 2021. According to the “Register to Vote / Update Your … Continue reading Offense and Sentencing: Elbert Melton, Jr was convicted of voter fraud and released on bond on 1/16/2019.[6]AP News, “Alabama Mayor Convicted of Voter Fraud, Removed from Office,” altoday.com, January 17, 2019 One month later he was sentenced to one year in jail to be followed by two years of probation.[7]AP News, “Former Gordon Mayor Elbert Melton Convicted of Voter Fraud, Sentenced to Year in Jail,” altoday.com, February 20, 2019 On 4/3/2020, an application for rehearing at the Criminal Court of Appeals was overruled. On 6/12/2020 the Supreme Court of Alabama denied a writ of certiorari that would have led to a case review.	“The mayor of Gordon, Alabama, has been convicted of voter fraud and removed from office. News outlets report Elbert Melton was convicted … of unlawfully falsifying ballots when he was elected in 2016. … This conviction strips him of his office. … Melton was charged in September with absentee ballot fraud and second-degree theft of property.”[8]AP News, “Alabama Mayor Convicted of Voter Fraud, Removed from Office,” altoday.com, January 17, 2019 “Melton,… illegally notarized two ballots, without witnesses present, during the 2016 election in which he was running for mayor.”[9]Heritage Foundation, “Election Fraud Cases – Elbert Melton,” heritage.org, accessed on May 10, 2022 Case Notes: Elbert Melton, Jr. v. State of Alabama Houston Circuit Court: CC-17-1469; CC-17-1470 Criminal Appeals: CR-18-0498 Supreme Court of Alabama: 1190573	Type of Election: Mayoral Party Affiliation: Non-Partisan Theoretical Election Effect: No effect on Congressional or Presidential elections

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