College Dems' get-out-the-vote e-mail prompts GOP to request probe

The Athens County Republican Party and Ohio University College Republicans are asking the county Board of Elections to investigate an alleged offer by the College Democrats to pay people to vote, or else pay a bounty to others who find people to vote.

Representatives of the College Democrats, however, said an e-mail cited as evidence has been misconstrued, and that nobody intended to offer anyone money to vote.

The e-mail sent out to club members by OU College Democrats Vice President Kellie Galan urged College Democrats to participate in a march to the polls on Friday for early voting (this is a correction; originally we reported it was election day): "If you have not voted yet, please come on out and bring some friends in the same situation... Remember, if you bring a friend from 4th ward they are more than a friend, they're 5 bucks!"

The mention of the Fourth Ward is a reference to the only contested Athens City Council race on Tuesday. A Republican, Randy Morris, has been engaged in a bitter fight with Democratic City Council member Christine Fahl for the east-side council seat.

"If money was being paid or offered by the College Democrats to college students or anyone else to vote, this is a serious violation of Ohio's election laws," Athens County GOP Chair Pete Couladis said in a press release.

OU College Republicans President Suzi Hawk said the e-mail makes it seem like the club is paying people to vote.

"I think it's highly unethical and illegal to do that," Hawk said.

The Ohio Revised Code's section on campaigns and elections strictly prohibits "advance, pay, or cause to be paid or procure or offer to procure money or other valuable thing to or for the use of another, with the intent that it or part thereof shall be used to induce such person to vote or to refrain from voting."

Hawk said if the club was indeed paying people to vote, it should instead "find another way to entice the voters."

In an interview Monday afternoon, College Democrats VP Galan said the e-mail's meaning had been misconstrued.

"We're not involved in any kind of voter fraud," Galan said. (Here's the College Dems' official response, released last night.)

Galan said the club was offering $5 to volunteers who were canvassing "“ doing such things as walking door-to-door and offering voters rides to the Board of Elections "“ for Election Day.

"The $5 is more of an incentive for volunteers," Galan said.

A careful reading of the e-mail makes it look as if the College Democrats may be offering the "5 bucks" to members who bring the Fourth Ward voters, rather than offering the money to those voters themselves.

Chris Mullen, communications director for the College Democrats, said that allegations of the club committing voter fraud are "absolutely false."

Mullen echoed Galan's statements, saying the club was "compensating volunteers for their time."

Hawk disagreed that the e-mail was misinterpreted. "The way the e-mail is worded is that they are paying people to vote," she said.

Mullen said the money being paid to volunteers was provided by the Athens County Democratic Party. Party Chair Susan Gwinn did not return phone calls Monday night.

Hawk said she's not sure how the e-mail first surfaced but because the College Democrats used the university server to send the e-mail, it's in the public domain. The e-mail has been circulating on Facebook and Twitter throughout the day, and Hawk said she was able to find the e-mail just by searching for it on Google.

Hawk said that a formal complaint has not yet been made to the Board of Elections but the club, along with the Athens County Republican Party, plans to push the issue.

Couladis said in an e-mailed news release that he contacted Athens County Prosecutor C. David Warren Monday about the College Democrats' e-mail. He said the county Republican Party could file a complaint with the Ohio Elections Commission if more evidence of voter fraud is revealed.

Warren is a Democrat, though he has been a critic and opponent of party chair Gwinn.