Politics & Government

Fuller Clark: 'I Have Not Committed Voter Fraud'

UPDATED, 3:34 p.m., July 24: State Sen. Martha Fuller Clark, D-Portsmouth, adamantly denied that she committed any voter fraud or that any Obama for America campaign workers who lived in her house committed that offense.

"I have not committed voter fraud and neither have the people who were living here. Let them investigate," Fuller Clark said in an interview with Patch on Wednesday.

Fuller Clark said there were six people living in her house in November that included herself, her husband and son along with her god daughter, who is a UNH student, and two Obama for America campaign workers, who lived in her house from June through December.

"I never had any discussions with them about whether to register to vote," she said.

Fuller Clark said she has frequently opened up her home to young people in the past who have worked for various organizations and she said there is a young woman living there now from Cooperstown, N.Y., who is an intern at the Discover Portsmouth Center.

Earlier story:
State Sen. Martha Fuller Clerk, D-Portsmouth, is the target of voter eligibility questions.
WMUR-TV reported several campaign workers listed Fuller Clark's home as their address in the November election last year. Those workers then moved, WMUR said.

State law allows people to register to vote if they "(have) established a physical presence and (show) an intent to maintain a single continuous presence."

Republicans pounced on Fuller Clark after the report. State GOP Chair Jennifer Horn called for an investigation.

"It is outrageous that a senior Democrat lawmaker, who also serves as Vice Chairman of the State Democrat Party, would let people use her home address to potentially break New Hampshire laws and promote voter fraud," Horn said in a statement.

Harrell Kirstein, spokesman for the state Democratic Party, said Republicans were guilty of "partisan hypocrisy." He said multiple staffers for Mitt Romney's campaign also registered to vote in New Hampshire before moving out of state.

"It appears that just like campaign staffers of both parties or anyone who moves to New Hampshire for a job and votes here they followed all the relevant state laws," Kirstein said.

Fuller Clark spokesman Keith McCrea said it's "extremely common" for campaign workers to stay with candidates during election cycles.


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