Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Iowa woman who tried to vote for Donald Trump twice gets two years probation and $750 fine

The Trump supporter said she believed President Donald Trump’s unsubstantiated claims the election was rigged 

Maya Oppenheim
Friday 18 August 2017 11:20 EDT
Comments
After she was charged she said she was not initially planning to vote twice but instead said it was 'a spur-of-the-moment thing'
After she was charged she said she was not initially planning to vote twice but instead said it was 'a spur-of-the-moment thing' (Polk County Jail)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

A woman who was charged with attempting to vote for Donald Trump twice last year has been sentenced to two years of probation and a $750 (£580) fine.

Terri Lynn Rote, who is 56 and lives in Des Moines, was arrested in October last year after going to an early voting site in Des Moines in Iowa to cast a second vote for Mr Trump in the US presidential election.

The Trump supporter previously told police she cast two absentee ballots before the election because she believed President Trump’s unsubstantiated claims the election was rigged and her first ballot would be changed to a vote for his Democrat rival Hillary Clinton.

Ms Rote, who was arrested while trying to cast the second ballot, pleaded guilty to election misconduct last month.

After she was charged she said she was not initially planning to vote twice but instead said it was “a spur-of-the-moment thing” when she walked by the satellite voting location.

“I don’t know what came over me,” she told the Washington Post at the time.

She also said she had been a supporter of Mr Trump since the early days of his campaign after Republican candidate Mike Huckabee dropped out of the primary race.

In a sentencing order posted on Tuesday, district court Judge Robert Hanson said the felony election misconduct conviction will be erased from Ms Rote's record once she finishes probation and coughs up the fine.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in