Mayoral candidate lists two dead people on nomination papers

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) – A Woonsocket mayoral candidate is under scrutiny after the names and signatures of two dead people appeared on his nomination papers, while multiple living people on the list told NewsNation affiliate WPRI they never signed the document.

Keith Harrison, who’s running in the non-partisan mayoral race, confirmed Wednesday that city election officials had reached out to him to say they were rejecting invalid names and signatures in his paperwork.

A WPRI investigation revealed at least two of those people died last year, and four others said they never signed Harrison’s nomination papers. The candidate signed a sworn affidavit when submitting the papers, saying all the people on the list “did so sign the paper in my presence.”

On Wednesday, Harrison rejected the idea that he’d forged any signatures, saying there’s no way to authenticate the identities of people who sign nomination papers. All mayoral candidates are required to collect at least 100 signatures from registered voters to be included on the ballot.

“In a nutshell, we can’t, as candidates getting signatures – we can’t ask people for IDs or verification, so therefore here we are,” Harrison said.

Harrison, who still collected enough valid signatures to make the ballot, is running for office against Mayor Christopher Beauchamp and City Council President John Ward.

Beauchamp said he doesn’t know Harrison outside of seeing him from time-to-time before he became mayor and served in the City Council. He declined to comment on Harrison’s nomination papers, saying, “I just concentrate on my own signatures, not somebody else’s.”

Ward described the situation as “unfortunate,” saying he hopes it doesn’t somehow “scrambled the integrity of the election process.”

“Whoever it is has got problems beyond losing an election,” Ward said. “The state has been taking more of an interest in prosecuting any discretion in these types of cases.”

Candidate nomination papers were thrust into the spotlight last summer when a signature scandal rocked the campaign of Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos, a Democrat, who was running for Congress.

As Target 12 reported at the time, Rhode Islanders across the state reported having their signatures forged on Matos’s paperwork , including at least three dead people in Jamestown.

The scandal cast a shadow over Matos’s campaign and she went from being a frontrunner to finishing fourth in the race that was ultimately won by Gabe Amo.

Two people working for Matos’s campaign – Holly McClaren and Christopher Cotham – have since been charged criminally for forging campaign paperwork. Both have pleaded not guilty.

“I leave it to him to come up with an explanation,” Ward said about Harrison’s nomination papers.

Target 12 has confirmed two of those people died last year, long before Rhode Island candidates could begin collecting signatures for this year’s elections. The names included Cindy Roy, a well-known volunteer and poll worker, whose obituary shows she died in April 2023.

Karen LaBossiere, a lifelong Woonsocket resident who worked as a certified nurse assistant in nursing homes, was also included in the nomination papers. She died last August , her brother confirmed.

Four living people on Harrison’s list told Target 12 they never signed the paperwork, including Joseph and Jane Iskierski. After reviewing a text photo of the paperwork, Jane Iskierski responded, “No. That is not even spelled right.”

The Woonsocket Board of Canvassers is now expected to call a meeting in the coming days, where they will meet behind closed doors in executive session. While it’s not entirely clear what will be discussed, a postponed agenda shows it involves an “investigation of signatures collected on nomination papers for local office.”

Historically, this type of discussion is held at times when local election boards want to decide whether to involve law enforcement. Harrison said Wednesday he hasn’t been asked to join the meeting.

Ward said he’s confident “whatever the issue is, it’s not with me or Chris Beauchamp.”

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