SANCHEZ-VASQUEZ

The Marshalltown man accused of illegally voting in the July 16 special city council election has formally pleaded not guilty to two charges of first-degree election misconduct.

Jorge Oscar Sanchez Vasquez’s attorney, Billy Mallory of Urbandale, submitted a written initial appearance document before his client’s first scheduled Marshall County Courthouse appearance on Wednesday. The document provided the not guilty plea and a hope the charges would be dismissed at the state’s cost.

Sanchez Vasquez, 42, of Marshalltown, is scheduled to make his next court appearance on Oct. 22 at 9:30 a.m. First-degree election misconduct is a class D felony, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $10,245 fine.

The election fraud charges are in connection with offenses alleged to have occurred during the special 4th Ward Marshalltown city council election on July 16 to fill a vacant seat left by the passing of longtime Councilor Al Hoop. Melisa Fonseca won the seat after receiving 340 votes to Mark Eaton’s 264.

The Marshall County Sheriff’s Office conducted the fraud investigation and found Sanchez Vasquez registered to vote before casting a ballot during the special election. While he is a legal resident of the United States, Sanchez Vasquez is not a citizen.

He was arrested on Sept. 18 after he willingly turned himself in. Sanchez Vasquez was held in the Marshall County Jail and posted a $10,000 bail the following day.

Sanchez Vasquez will be prosecuted by the Iowa Attorney General’s Office, which now has jurisdiction over such cases. Prior to 2023, election fraud cases were prosecuted by county attorneys.

Alyssa Brouillet, the communications director for Attorney General Brenna Bird, said the Sanchez Vasquez case is not the only election fraud case they are working on. There are double-voting and felon-voting cases.

“We know that just a few votes can sway the outcome of an election, as we witnessed in a recent Iowa Congressional race that was decided by six votes,” she said.

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Contact Lana Bradstream at 641-753-6611 ext. 210 or lbradstream@timesrepublican.com.