KRGV reports from South Texas’ Rio Grande Valley: “The Hidalgo County District Attorney’s Office will launch an investigation into allegations of voter fraud in recent elections.  Agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation recently arrested three Hidalgo County women accused of paying for votes in the 2012 General Election. Federal officials said the women affected the outcome of some elections.”

In addition to politiqueras’ mail ballot fraud, DA Rene Guerra says he anticipates criminal investigations into vote-buying and illegal assistance at the polls, where in past elections people have assisted as many as 700 voters – enough to change the outcome of the elections.

“Guerra said the Texas Legislature will have to act to put an end to the politiquera problem.” 

Republican State Representative Cindy Burkett aimed to do just that in 2013 with HB 148, a bill to curb mail ballot harvesting that passed despite strident opposition from Democrats including the head of the Mexican American Legislative Caucus, who sought to smear Burkett as racially motivated because “the majority of people who live in South Texas are Hispanic.”

South Texas Hispanic DA Guerra says he won’t let politics get in the way of pursuing fraudulent voting activity that is “destroying the fabric of a good democratic process.”  So far, legislative Democrats – especially those with a vested interest in lawsuits against safe voting reforms – haven’t appeared willing to follow Guerra’s example.