Last week as the national allegations of Strategic Allied Consulting Inc.'s voter registration irregularities and fraud rose it jumped from Florida to Nevada, North Carolina, Virginia and Colorado. In Florida official investigations have begun in ten counties where paid contractors allegedly falsified registrations ranging from using the dead, previous voters, bogus addresses among other methods, (see LA Times) .
WASHINGTON — Florida elections officials said Friday that at least 10 counties have identified suspicious and possibly fraudulent voter registration forms turned in by a firm working for the Republican Party of Florida, which has filed an election fraud complaint with the state Division of Elections against its one-time consultant.
Denver Post reported the termination of the contracting operation as the scandal grew outside of Florida.
Colorado’s Republican party severed a contract Thursday with D.C.-based Strategic Allied Consulting after national party officials fired the same firm for potential voter fraud in Florida.
In Colorado, Strategic Allied Consulting was registering voters, said Colorado GOP Chair Ryan Call, who said they also had planned on using the firm for get out the vote efforts.
Now there is an admission of the Republican top party official that indeed the group was registering voters, but under whose VRD approval, I will get to that later, more background.
Simultaneously as the Strategic Allied Consulting was breaking another issue broke last week in Colorado where now the possibility exists that the RNC, Colorado Republican Party and the El Paso County Republican Party could be fully sucked into a scandal because of a random viral video exposing the on the ground methods of misrepresenting paid operatives where they took overt measures to hide their identities and cause. In doing so they appear to be in open violation of Colorado Elections Law. (Link to the video)
Let me fully review:
Sunday that video was released and went viral was originally recorded back in August:
In the video a paid 20 year old student operative now known as Victoria Bautista responds begrudgingly that she was being paid by the County Clerk's office. The questioner repeats the question where the young political operative confirms again she is being paid for by the County Clerk's office. The original point of contention was that the young operative initially approached persons inquiring whether they supported Romney and that they aim was to register people who supported Romney while purporting to work for a local government agency that happened to be in charge of conducting the elections and managing he voter roles.
Through the week the story developed where first the young operative was characterized as not only mistaken but first was described as a volunteer, (video news link here)
9NEWS learned Sunday that the young woman is a volunteer for the Romney campaign. They say she was inexperienced and have since spoke with her.
Then the next day she was a paid party staffer on her first day, (
link here to a different news video)
According to Williams, the girl gathering voter registrations does not work for the County office. It turns out she's actually a paid employee for the Colorado Republican Committee.
Then as the week ended it was finally admitted she was a paid contractor of Strategic Allied Consulting. (
News report link here)
The Colorado Republican Party has terminated its contract with a firm hired to run voter registration and get-out-the-vote operations here after allegations of fraud, FOX31 Denver has confirmed....And FOX31 Denver has confirmed that the young woman seen registering voters outside a Colorado Springs grocery store in a YouTube video, in which she admits to trying to only register voters who support Mitt Romney, was indeed a contract employee of Sproul’s company.
Then on Saturday, it was learned from the
Colorado Springs local newspaper had an article that not only revealed her name, but that she (and other employees) had signed a "non disclosure agreement" in the course of registering voters, where it demanded she not inform anyone, including the public who she was actually working for. The article also quotes the number two ranking local Republican party official that not only of this "non disclosure" agreement but the desire for Strategic Allied Consulting to use the local party's identification (logo) on business cards for the contractors, an overt effort to misrepresent themselves to the public owing to the local party official's description of a "shadow organization".
On Friday, local officials confirmed that the young woman was working for a company called Strategic Allied Consulting, which specializes in signing up new voters. Strategic was fired Thursday by both the national and state Republican parties after it was linked to possible voter fraud in Florida.
Bill Roy, chief operating officer of the El Paso County GOP, said Strategic was responsible for more than possible voter fraud.
“This is an organization that is characterized by mismanagement, ineptitude, stupidity, and they got what they deserved,” Roy said, and called Strategic a “shadow organization” for trying to keep its identity from the public.
The young woman in the video is 20-year-old Victoria Bautista, according to Roy. She was working two jobs, paying her way through school.
The Gazette attempted to reach her but was unsuccessful. Roy said she did not want to comment to the media.
Strategic required its employees to sign non-disclosure forms, pledging they wouldn’t tell anyone who they worked for. That’s why Bautista said on the video that she worked for the county clerk’s office — she was caught off-guard, and had to lie for Strategic, Roy said.
Roy also said he banned one of Strategic’s supervisors from the county party headquarters after the company threatened to fire a top-notch employee.
The company, he said, had requested business cards with the county GOP logo. Company officials changed their minds after getting the cards, and told their employees to destroy them.
One employee did not destroy all the cards, Roy said, and a Strategic supervisor wanted him fired. Roy said the supervisor refused to discuss the matter with him.
“We do not permit that type of conduct, so it’s like, ‘OK, you’re out of here,’” Roy said. The video with Bautista, taken in mid-August, was posted on YouTube on Sept. 21.
Strategic had been hired by Republicans to register voters in crucial swing states — including Colorado, Florida, Virginia, North Carolina and Nevada.
Republican Party officials said Aug. 14 was Bautista’s third day registering voters and her first day working alone. She was screening passers-by outside a local Safeway store.
When questioned about who she worked for, the young woman stuttered, and finally said it was the county clerk’s office.
This article revealed so much if you have knowledge of Colorado's Election and specifically Voter Registration statutes. That case is outlined below the orange design that
remains without a name.
The State of Colorado has specific statutes regarding organizations engaging in Voter Registration Drives, known as VRD's. Let me begin that any group, defined as two persons or more engage in Voter Registration they must register with the Secretary of State where they go through a set of procedures to be approved and authorized to conduct such activities. Strategic Allied Consulting is not on the current list: Colorado Secretary of State Approved List:
2012 Approved Voter Registration Drives
Voter Registration Drive Organization Name Organizer
303 Group Holdings Nicholas Brent Mantanona
9-5 National Association of Working Women Bridget Kaminetsky
Advocates for Biblical Citizenship Sharon Johnson
African American Initiative of Colorado Democrats Vivian Stovall
AFT Colorado Sarah Hamilton
Aging Voters Matter Vivian Stovall
Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc Steven L Jones
Amber Pacheco Amber Pacheco
Arapahoe County Democratic Party Jean Greenberg
Association for Community Living Kristine Johnson
Aurora Chapter NAACP Vorry C Moon
Bayaud Enterprises Fatherhood Group Calvin R. Coley
Black Coloradans for Obama Patricia M Duncan
Blacks in Government Leonori E Fisher
Boulder Preparatory High School Rachel Brett
Calvary Chapel Castle Rock Michael W. Murray
Carol Peeples Carol Peeples
Catholic Health Initiative Laura Kay Ryan-Krausa
Cherry Hills Community Church Keri Brehm
Chinook Clubhouse, The
Elicia Goodsoldier
Christ's Church Apostolic, Inc. Almer R. Combs
Citizens of Lyons Lauren Ling
Cleo N. Breeze Cleo N. Breeze
Clinica Family Health
Judy L Troyer
Cody Engelhaupt for Logan County Janet Engelhaupt
Colorado AFL-CIO Kate Stigberg
Colorado Coalition for the Homeless Margaret Snead
Colorado Democratic Party Spencer Ross
Colorado Election Law Project Amanda Forsythe
Colorado Hispanic Republicans Martin Mendez
Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition Lynn Cordova
Colorado Knights of Columbus John Eiler
Colorado Latino Leadership Advocacy & Research Organization Olivia Mendoza
Colorado Participation Project Rebecca Gorrell
Colorado Public Interest Research Foundation Inc. Danny Katz
Colorado Republican Party Ryan Call
Colorado School of Mines Campus Republicans Nathaniel Marshall
Colorado Springs Conservatives April Tumlinson
Committee to Elect James McMillan Colorado House James McMillan
Conrad J. Schaap Conrad J. Schaap
CU Denver School of Public Affairs Sarah Kirschner
Denver Democratic Central Committee (Democratic Party of Denver) Julie Kronenberger
Denver Republican Party Jeff Krump
Denver University Pioneer Leadership Program Elizabeth Davis
El Comite De Longmont Robert Nelson
El Paso County Republicans, Inc William B Roy
El Voto Latino Tangia Al-awaji Estrada
Estelle Carson Estelle Carson
Fellowship Community Church Sally Berthelsen
FieldWorks Ben Prochazka
Flagship Help Center Angela Douglas
Fort Morgan High School Student Senate Ben Creighton
Friends of Bob Rankin Joyce & Bob Rankin
Front Range Community College Larimer Campus - Student Government Matthew Ryan Sprague
Garian Vigil Garian Vigil
Globeville/Elyria/Swansea Votes Linda Masley
Grace Chapel Jack French
Grassroots Voter Outreach Rebecca Tong
Grassroots Voter Outreach Lodo David Hession
Grassroots Voter Outreach South Denver Kali Lasher-Sommers
Gunnison County Democratic Central Committee Diana Graves
Headcount Tim McCormick
Headcount Denver
Pia Sabina Valeriana
His Victory Group Willis K Kulp
Hispanic Affairs Project Nicole Bernal Ruiz
Hoang Nguyen Hoang Nguyen
Holy Ghost Church Adriana Frazier
Huerfano County Democratic Party David Gnaizda
Infinite Mind Consulting Gary Flakes
Joe's Garage Joe Perez
Johnson & Wales University Adam Westbrook
Jonathan Bartha Jonathan Bartha
Joseph J. Martinez Joseph J. Martinez
Kids Voting Mesa County Martha Graf
Laura Dixon Laura Dixon
League of Women Voters Denver Bobby Holleman
League of Women Voters of Adams County Shirley Ann Mrochek
League of Women Voters of Arapahoe County Marilyn J Ayers
League of Women Voters of Boulder County Elizabeth Nick
League of Women Voters of Larimer County Patricia J Giego
League of Women Voters of Mesa County Tanya Travis
League of Women Voters of Pueblo Barbara Stevens
League of Women Voters of the Gunnison Area Doris Kuiper
Legal Center for People with Disabilities and Older People, The
Faith Gross
Libertarian Party of Colorado Christine Hartman
Martin Kaye Martin Kaye
Mary Beth Corsentino Mary Beth Corsentino
Matthew Hickey Matthew Hickey
Metro Community Provider Network John Reid
Michelle Gilbert Michelle Gilbert
Mi Familia Vota Education Fund Grace Lopez Ramirez
Montrose Republican Party David K. Laursen
Moveon Victoria Jahnke
NAACP Robert Davidson
NAACP Barbara Mickens
NAACP Markia Parker
National Council of LaRaza Jesus Altamirano
Native Vote in Towaoc Deborah Chalepah
New Creation Church Tami Miller
New Era Colorado Foundation Carrie Jackson
New Life Jennifer Valdois
Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Xi Pi Chapter Michael Williams
Parish Outreach St. Gabriel's Catholic Church Diane Littleton
Peak Dems Tracey Danielle Rivers
Pipefitters Local 208 Thomas W. Tuttle
Rachel Contizano Rachel Contizano
Red Rocks Community College Political Science Club Lee Edward Miller
Register Colorado Rob O'Regan
Republican Party of Larimer County Kathryn D. Cooper
Right Turn Colorado David G. Walker
Rights for All People Lizeth Chacon
Routt County Republican Women Brita Horn
Royal Gorge Tea Party Georgia Smith
St. Michael Parish Patricia Reilley
SEIU International Akaluck Nurack
Shane Albrandt Shane Albrandt
Southwest Early College Josiah Silverstein
Students for Sensible Drug Policy-UCCS Chapter Raul Perez
Thomas Mark Scott Thomas Mark Scott
Time Warner Cable Jennifer J. Minemyer
Together Colorado (formerly, Metro Organizations for People) Meghan Carrier
Trinidad Recall Action Committee Steve Bolton
United Food & Commercial Workers Local 7 Debra Olander
United States Student Association, The Hailee Koehler
Urban League Guild of Metropolitan Denver Dr. Alice Langley
Valley-Wide Health Systems, Inc Suzanne DeVore
Vote Colorado Seth Whitworth
Vote For Freedom William Mullica
Vote or They Win Thomas Pritchard
Voting and Action.org Michael Clifton
Western Colorado Patriots Susan H Magee
Western Colorado Patriots II Lois Dunn
Western Slope Constitutional Patriots Lizabeth Matz
Work for Progress Julie Titus
Zonta Club of Greeley (prospective) Katherine Swafford
Colorado Republican Party and El Paso County Republican Party Inc., are bold, as well as Southwest Early College and Students for Sensible Drug Policy UCCS as point where Strategic Allied Consulting would be listed, it is not---surprised?
Now this is significant in that the above news reports have Republican officials stating that Strategic Allied Consultants were contracted to engage in voter registration activities. Interestingly note that both Ryan Call (Colorado Republican Party Chair) and Wiliiam Roy (El Paso County Republicans, COO) are listed as the point of contact which in the Secretary of State's eyes is the registered organizer.
Election Rules 98 CCR 1501-1]
Rule 44. Rules Regulating Voter Registration Drives
44.1 Statement of Intent
44.1.1 In accordance with section 1-2-701, C.R.S., et seq., the organizer of a Voter
Registration Drive (“VRD”) shall file a Statement of Intent with the Secretary of
State to conduct a voter registration drive on a form prescribed by the Secretary
of State. The Statement of Intent shall include the following information:
(a) The name of the group conducting the VRD, and the name and contact
information of the individual organizing the VRD;
(b) The name of the agent (who is required to be a Colorado resident) and
the contact information for that agent, if different from the person
organizing the VRD;
(c) A statement specifying that the VRD intends to operate within the State of
Colorado;
(d) A notice that the VRD number expires at the end of the calendar year;
and
(e) A signature line requiring the organizer’s signature.
Note that each group must submit an application with its name and organizing individual. Both the state and county party submitted applications but both publicly admitted that they knew this group was working for them in the state and they were not on an approved list. Further El Paso's COO admits that this group contracted by the state party and using their facilities and wanting to use their identification image was not reported. The COO further volunteers an employee dispute, which I presume involved a local person known to the COO and who was being screwed, not unlike Victoria Bautista as in local politics local connections are king. Let us continue:
44.1.3
The Secretary of State shall immediately attempt to verify the information
provided in the Statement of Intent prior to issuing a number to the VRD
organizer. The Secretary of State may deny a number to the voter registration
drive organizer if the information provided on the Statement of Intent cannot be
verified.
Now once the information is verified the organizer must complete a training program.
44.2
Training
44.2.1 In order to be issued a VRD number, the organizer VRD shall successfully
complete the online training and test provided by the Secretary of State, and
submit a Statement of Intent along with a Training Acknowledgment form to the
Secretary of State.
44.2.2 In addition to training for the organizer, the Secretary of State shall make available
information for the organizer to train individual circulators. Organizers shall
provide training to all circulators. Organizers shall obtain and maintain on file
signed attestations from each circulator that he or she will adhere to all the
requirements of the Secretary of State election rules and the Colorado Revised
Statutes pertaining to elections, and that they are aware of the penalties
associated with the mishandling of voter registration application forms. The
organizers shall furnish the circulator attestations to the secretary of state upon
request.
Instructions for Completing “Statement of Intent” form List the name of the organizer and the contact information for the organization in the top section. A parent organization is listed when a group is organizing under the “umbrella” of another group. Most groups do not have a parent organization. If you do not, leave this section blank.
Provide the name of the agent and contact information for the agent in the third section. The agent and organizer may be the same person but please fill in both sections completely. List the name of the counties you will be conducting your drive. You can list Statewide and all counties will be notified. You must collect all applications from all voters even if they reside in a county that is not listed on the “Statement of Intent” you have filed.
Sign on the signature line, print name, and provide date of signature. If you must make changes to the Statement of Intent, you must file them in writing with the Secretary of State’s Office. You may file by fax, e-mail, mail, or in person. Contact information
for the Secretary of State is provided on page 10. It is important that you keep the information on this form current in case we need to contact you.
Remember what I said about Mr. Call of the state party and Mr. Roy of the local party, they were designated as the person to train all individual circulators and further get attestations as to who they were and that they were trained and aware of the state election laws.
44.2.6 After completing the training and test, the VRD organizer shall sign a Training Acknowledgement confirming that the training and test have been completed and that he or she has been duly informed of rules, laws and penalties relating to voter
registration drives.
By signing the training acknowledgement form you will be asked to agree that: You have completed the Colorado Secretary of State required Voter Registration Drive (VRD) Training.
You will ensure that all VRD circulators are trained on C.R.S. 1-2-701 et seq. prior to circulating voter registration forms. You understand that if circulators are paid, the VRD organization will pay by the hours or days, or events worked and not by the voter registration applications turned in or collected. You are aware of and understand all penalties in the law relating to voter registrations. Drives, intimidation, mishandling forms, failing to turn in forms, and misuse of confidential voter information.
You have reviewed how registrants and circulators must complete the voter registration drive form and will ensure that this is emphasized when training circulators. You have been provided with the opportunity to ask and have all of your questions answered regarding voter registration drives. Each circulator you have trained must also sign an of acknowledgement stating that they have been trained by you. You can use the “Training Acknowledgment” form provided by our office, or create your own internal tracking form.
You must maintain a file of the VRD circulators and other participants you have trained. These forms must be maintained by the organization. The Secretary of State can request these forms from your organization if necessary.
Now this important. Each VRD gets their own number that is assigned to all their forms that are carbon triple forms from the Secretary of State:
see a form here
44.3 Number Assigned
44.3.1 After successful completion of the required training and test, and submission of
the required forms, the Secretary of State shall assign a unique number to the
VRD. After issuing a unique number to the VRD, the Secretary of State shall:
44.4 Voter Registration Drive Voter Application Forms
44.4.1 The Secretary of State shall approve a standard Colorado Voter Registration Application Form to be used by the VRD that shall include a tear off receipt.
44.4.3 The organizer shall be responsible for placing the VRD number on the application form and the receipt portion of the standard Colorado form.
44.4.4 The person circulating the Voter Registration Application Forms shall ensure that the tear-off receipt on the standard Colorado Application is completed and given to the
applicant. The person circulating the voter application forms shall advise the applicant
that the receipt may be needed when he or she votes.
Penalties for Failure to Comply with VRD Laws as an intermediary between Colorado voters and governmental entities, you are responsible for ensuring that fraud, intimidation, mishandling of forms, misuse of confidential voter information, and failing to turn in voter registration drive applications do not occur
Anyone who engages in any of the following is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars, or by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than one year, or by both such fine and imprisoned as provided in section 1-13-111:
Intentionally interferes with or impedes the registration of electors or who knowingly
permits or encourages another to do so. (§ 1-13-201, C.R.S.)
Impedes, prevents, or otherwise interferes with the free exercise of the elective franchise of any elector or compels, induces, or prevails upon any elector either to give or refrain from giving his or her vote at any election provided by law or to give or refrain from giving his or her vote for any particular person or measure at any such election. (§ 1-13-713, C.R.S.)
A VRD Organizer who engages in any of the following shall be punished by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars pursuant to (§ 1-2-703, C.R.S.):
Conducts a VRD without filing a Statement of Intent with the Secretary of State’s Office; or Fails to maintain a designated agent in the State of Colorado; or Uses a voter registration application form, other than the Voter Registration Drive Application form approved by the Secretary of State’s office or the National Voter Registration Form; or
Fails to fulfill training requirements
Therefore Mr. Call and Mr. Roy both knew that Strategic Allied Consulting was not registered even though they a group in the activities of voter registration. They themselves miscarried their dutiful role of an organizer of a VRD with the Secretary of State and I believe a full independent investigation needs to be launched not by the partisan Secretary of State but an independent investigator and determine the entire scope and operations that this shadow group engaged in. As Mr. Roy stated so eloquently:
“This is an organization that is characterized by mismanagement, ineptitude, stupidity, and they got what they deserved,” Roy said, and called Strategic a “shadow organization” for trying to keep its identity from the public."