A member of the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe of South Dakota is going to trial in state court on February 9 for alleged voter fraud in the 2002 U.S. Senate election.

Rebecca Red Earth-Villeda is accused of submitting fraudulent absentee ballots. She was charged with eight counts of forgery by state officials.

Villeda is one of two people charged in connection with alleged voter fraud on reservations. But the state attorney general said there was no widespread fraud. State officials subpoenaed residents of the Crow Creek Reservation as part of their probe.

The investigation was controversial because Republican John Thune lost the Senate race to Democrat Tim Johnson. Indian voters carried Johnson to victory.

Get the Story:
Official reports some voter fraud still unsolved (The Rapid City Journal 1/9)

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