A Bethlehem man faces election fraud charges after the U.S. Attorney’s Office said he cast two votes in the 2020 presidential election.
Matthew Laiss, 31, was charged by indictment with one count of voting more than once in a federal election, and one count of voter fraud.
According to the indictment, Laiss resided and was legally registered to vote in Ottsville, Bucks County, until about August 2020, when he moved to Florida. There, he applied for and obtained a Florida driver’s license and registered to vote in that state.
However, in October 2020, the Bucks County Board of Elections mailed a ballot for the November 2020 election to Laiss’ former address, where his parents still lived. On Oct. 31, 2020, the indictment says, Laiss filled out and returned the mail-in ballot. Then, on Nov. 3, he went to a polling location in Florida and again cast a vote, the indictment alleges.
The charges each carry a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine of $10,000 to $250,000.
