TRENTON — Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin today announced that a campaign manager for a would-be candidate in the 2021 governor’s race is facing election fraud charges after allegedly filing nearly 2,000 bogus petitions in an attempt to get his candidate on the ballot for the Democratic primary.
James Devine, 61, of Lambertville, was charged by summons with one count of third-degree offenses concerning nomination certificates or petitions, one count of third-degree tampering with public records or information and one count of fourth-degree falsifying or tampering with records.
“At a moment in our history when American democracy is facing some of its most formidable challenges from false claims about elections and questions about election integrity, my office will not tolerate any sort of fraud that attempts to deceptively and unfairly benefit a candidate or undermine free and fair elections in New Jersey,” said Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin.
“The voters need to have faith that when they go to the polls, the candidates listed on the ballot have gotten there legitimately and that they aren’t being scammed,” said Office of Public Integrity and Accountability Executive Director Thomas Eicher. “Fraudulent acts like this erode faith in our government and the rule of law, and there must be consequences.”
The crimes were allegedly committed on or about April 5, 2021 in a bid to get New Jersey gubernatorial hopeful Lisa McCormick on the ballot for the June 8, 2021...
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