Former AG Candidate, Ex-State Rep Charged In Voting Machine Case

LANSING, MI — A former Republican candidate for Michigan attorney general and an ex-state representative, both allies of Donald Trump, have been charged in connection with an effort to tamper with voting machines after the 2020 presidential election.

Lawyer Matthew DePerno was charged with undue possession of a voting machine and conspiracy while former legislator Daire Rendon was charged with conspiracy to commit undue possession of a voting machine and false pretenses, according to special prosecutor D.J. Hilson. They were arraigned Tuesday in Oakland County, a court official said.

Michigan is one of at least three states where prosecutors say people breached election systems while embracing and spreading Trump's lie that the 2020 election was stolen.

DePerno and Rendon are among nine people in Michigan named thus far by Attorney General Dana Nessel's office as having been involved in the scheme.

Five Michigan vote tabulators were illegally taken from three counties and brought to a hotel room, according to documents released last year by Nessel's office. Investigators found that the tabulators were broken into and "tests" were performed on the equipment. DePerno was named as a "prime instigator" in the case.

His attorney, Paul Stablein, told The Detroit News that DePerno “categorically denies any wrongdoing” and “firmly believes that these charges are not based upon any actual truth and are motivated primarily by politics rather than evidence.”

Rendon’s lawyer did not immediately respond to a comment request from the newspaper.

DePerno and Rendon could face up to five years in prison if convicted, according to the outlet.

The charges came the same day Trump was charged by the U.S. Justice Department with conspiracy to defraud the United States and other counts as part of his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election. The former president is also being investigated for election interference in Georgia.

“We know the 2020 Presidential Election in Michigan was the most heavily scrutinized election in American history, and every audit and review found the election to be secure, fair, and accurate to the will of the voters,” Nessel said in a statement Tuesday, calling the allegations against DePerno and Rendon “incredibly serious and unprecedented.”

“The alleged actions by these defendants, and others, who worked to erode trust in our election system caused undeniable harm to our democracy.”

In a separate investigation, Nessel last month announced eight criminal charges each against 16 Republicans who she said submitted false certificates as electors for then-President Trump in Michigan, a state Joe Biden won.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.