CONCORD, N.H. — A man from West Lebanon, New Hampshire has been arrested and charged with wrongful voting for voting twice in the Nov. 8, 2016 General Election, N.H. Attorney General Gordon J. MacDonald and N.H. State Police say.
According to police and MacDonald, Vincent Marzello, 65, knowingly voted more than once in the City of Lebanon during the 2016 election. He voted once as himself and once as Helen Elisabeth Ashley.
Wrongful voting is a class B felony, which carries a civil penalty of a fine up to $5,000.
The Attorney General’s Office says during the investigation, it was discovered Ashley had been appointed by the N.H. Democratic Party (NHDP) as an Inspector of Election. In a letter dated Aug. 27, 2020, the party suspended her appointment effective immediately.
An NHDP spokesperson tells NEWS CENTER Maine their first known interaction with Ashley was when she signed up via a public online form to become a ballot inspector.
"After we were made aware that an individual who previously was appointed as a ballot inspector may have been involved in a pending investigation, we suspended the individual's ballot inspector status," the spokesperson said.
In the suspension letter, Ray Buckley, chair of the NHDP wrote: "New Hampshire's Inspectors of Election are held to the highest standards, as they share responsibility for preserving the integrity of our elections. It has come to our attention that you may be involved in a pending investigation, and as such we are suspending your appointment effective immediately pending resolution of the investigation."
Marzello is also facing civil enforcement action for applying for and obtaining a ballot in a name other than his own during the 2016 election, by using the name Helen Elisabeth Ashley.
N.H. State Police investigated the case. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Nicholas Chong Yen of the Election Law Unit.
