A Costa Mesa lady accused of registering her canine to vote in two Southern California elections made her first court docket look Tuesday in Westminster.
Laura Lee Yourex, 62, charged with one felony depend of perjury, one felony depend of procuring or providing a false or solid doc to be filed, two felony counts of casting a poll when not entitled to vote, and one felony depend of registering a non-existent particular person to vote. The costs stem from mail-in ballots forged within the 2021 California gubernatorial recall election and the 2022 main election that authorities stated had been forged in her canine Maya Jean’s identify.
The canine’s vote was counted within the 2021 gubernatorial recall election, however rejected within the 2022 main, based on federal prosecutors.
She faces as much as six years in state jail if convicted on all counts.
Yourex’s arraignment was postponed, and he or she didn’t communicate on the Tuesday court docket continuing. However her legal professional stated outdoors court docket that she reported her actions to authorities. Lawyer Jaime Coulter stated Yourex was attempting to show a degree when she registered her boxer and forged the ballots.
“Laura Yourex sincerely regrets her unwise try to reveal flaws in our state voting system, intending to enhance it by demonstrating that even a canine might be registered to vote,” Coulter stated.
The Orange County Registrar of Voter’s Workplace contacted county prosecutors in October 2024 a few resident who reported that she registered her canine to vote and had forged a mail-in poll she obtained that was addressed to her canine — Maya Jean Yourex — for the 2 elections.
California elections code requires an individual to register to vote by submitting an affidavit of registration that features the voter’s identify, residence, mailing handle, date of beginning, political celebration choice and a certification that the voter is a citizen of the US. The doc have to be signed underneath penalty of perjury.
Proof of residence or ID will not be required to register to vote in state elections, however first-time voters in federal elections should present proof of residence and registration.
“When somebody is registered to vote, they begin by being requested what their driver’s license quantity, California ID quantity quantity is or final 4 digits of their social (safety quantity),” stated Bob Web page from the registrar’s workplace. “If they supply that, the secretary of state tries to match that information with the voter with the data the DMV has. If that information doesn’t match, that voter is contacted to have to supply proof of ID underneath federal legislation. State legislation would not have that requirement when it comes to flagging them, which is why a poll for the 2021 recall election was counted.”
The 2022 main poll registered within the canine’s identify was challenged and rejected.
“Enough proof was found to file legal fees towards Yourex for illegally registering her canine to vote after which casting mail-in ballots issued to her canine based mostly on the fraudulent voter registration,” the DOJ stated in an announcement asserting the fees. “On her social media, Yourex posted in January 2022 an image of her canine sporting an ‘I voted’ sticker and posing along with her poll. One other put up from October 2024 confirmed {a photograph} of Maya’s canine tag and a vote-by-mail poll with the caption ‘Maya continues to be getting her poll,’ although the canine had beforehand handed away.”
County leaders have condemned Yourex’s alleged actions, and stated a possible answer could possibly be to match voter registration info to animal licensing sooner or later.
“The truth that a canine can register and voted twice tells you the system will not be working, and it is damaged,” stated OC Supervisor Janet Nguyen. “If we will cross reference the addresses and names, if there is a identify that could possibly be suspicious, we will say, ‘Wait a minute. Let’s flag this.'”
Yourex was launched from custody on her personal recognizance. Her arraignment was continued to Dec. 10.
