SLO County mayoral candidate denies election fraud: ‘Anti-American woke agenda’
Former Arroyo Grande mayoral candidate Gaea Powell pleaded not guilty to several election fraud charges Tuesday, claiming that the situation was a “politically motivated” attempt to keep her from running for office in the future.
The San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office charged Powell with nine election fraud counts — eight of them felonies — on June 24.
Five counts are related to the 2022 voting year and four are related to 2024. In total, she was charged with three counts of fraudulently attempting to vote, two counts of perjury by declaration, two counts of false filing declaration of candidacy, one count of voter registration violation — all felonies — and one misdemeanor count of failing to send campaign finance reports exceeding $2,000.
San Luis Obispo County Deputy District Attorney Ben Blumenthal agreed for Powell to remain out of custody without posting bail since she showed up for court and put her case on the calendar herself.
Her next court hearing was scheduled for Aug. 11.
Public defender Kenneth Cirisan said evidence compiled by the District Attorney’s Office in the case was “voluminous” and that Powell was awaiting the opportunity to receive and review it.
Powell told The Tribune on Tuesday she looks forward to defending herself and seeing what evidence the District Attorney’s Office has.
She said she is not guilty on all counts and believes the investigation was “politically motivated.”
“I am a threat to their anti-American woke agenda,” she wrote in a handwritten statement to The Tribune. “The ultimate goal — to convict me of a felony to deny me the right to run for office again.”
Under California law, anyone convicted of “a conflict of interests, an act of fraud, dishonesty, a breach of a public trust, or money laundering” is prohibited from running for office for 20 years following the completion of their sentence, including probation.
Her business and ability to rent a new residence has been damaged by the investigation, Powell added, and she believes her right to due process has been violated.
The nine-month investigation was harassment and an attempt to intimidate her, she said, adding that she felt the five search warrants filed in the case were “unjust.”
“I will continue to fight for my rights, American values and I will continue to fight against our Governor and our local politicians’ unjust, anti-constitutional laws, ordinances, policies, mandates and their continued abuse of children.”
Powell clarified that the abuse she referred to was alleged pornographic materials in school library books and allowing transgender students to use bathrooms or locker rooms that align with their gender identity as well as compete in sports that align their gender identity.
Election fraud investigation centers on candidate’s residency
A key part of the charges against Powell appear to be tied to where she resided during both the 2022 and 2024 election cycles.
At a Sept. 19 Arroyo Grande election forum, Powell said she rents at a pair of residences: a house on Heritage Lane outside of city limits and a condominium on James Way.
Arroyo Grande’s municipal elections code specifies that for the election of council members, “any candidate for City Council must reside in, and be a registered voter in, the district in which he or she seeks election at the time nomination papers are issued.”
It does not state the same rule specifically for mayoral elections, however.
At the time, Powell told The Tribune she does not split her time between the residences and due to the health challenges of her elderly dogs and landlord on Heritage Lane, she had “been anchored to that property” and lived there full time.
Powell told The Tribune that she first decided to rent the condo because she felt morally called to run for Arroyo Grande mayor. She said she planned to rent or purchase the entire condo on James Way if the timing worked out with her finances, dogs and landlord.
Powell said during her first mayoral campaign in 2022, she spent time at the condo but did not live there full time.
She said she has been looking for a different property to rent within city limits over the past two months, but it has been difficult to find a residence with “this investigation hanging over my head.”
Powell previously told The Tribune the District Attorney’s investigation “should alarm folks,” claiming those leading the investigation into her residency during the election were biased against her.
She said she cooperated with the investigation and has emails between her and the city that “proves I have done nothing illegal to the best of my knowledge.”
Powell told The Tribune on Tuesday that the Fair Political Practices Commission recommends candidates check with their local elections offices for questions regarding local campaign ordinances, which is what she did when she reached out to Arroyo Grande legislative and information services director and city clerk Jessica Matson in July 2023.
Powell said she sought and received confirmation from the city on multiple occasions that there are no rules in the City’s Municipal Code requiring candidates with multiple residences to reside at their address inside the city limits for a certain amount of time in order to file candidacy papers and run for office.
“There are currently no residency restrictions related to time spent at one residence within the city limits versus at another outside city limits,” Matson told Powell in a July 2023 email exchange.
Pursuant to section 201 of the California Elections Code, “a candidate does need to be a registered voter within the city limits,” Matson also wrote to Powell.
