Canadian pleads guilty to illegally voting in NC federal elections

A Canadian man has pleaded guilty to two counts of illegally voting in federal elections in North Carolina. His sentencing is scheduled for May 18.

Federal court records indicated that Denis Joseph Bouchard entered guilty pleas Thursday to Counts 1 and 3 of the federal government’s charges against him. Other counts from a federal indictment will be dropped when Bouchard is sentenced.

Consideration of a plea agreement will be deferred until after the federal court received a presentence investigative report, according to court records.

A grand jury indicted Bouchard, a Canadian citizen, on charges that he illegally registered to vote and voted in federal elections in North Carolina in 2022 and 2024. 

Bouchard, 69, falsely claimed to be a United States citizen to vote in federal elections, including the most recent 2024 presidential election, according to court documents. Bouchard has lived in the United States since the 1960s but never obtained US citizenship. Despite his immigration status, Bouchard certified that he was a US citizen on voter registration applications in 2022 and 2024, when he cast a ballot in 2022 congressional election and 2024 presidential election, according to federal prosecutors.    

“Every single time a noncitizen casts an illegal vote in North Carolina, it steals and nullifies the vote of an actual citizen,” said US Attorney Ellis Boyle in August. “If the records are correct, this Canadian citizen appears to have voted in New Hanover and Pender County elections over the past 20 years. We intend to prove his illegal conduct in court and put an end to it.” 

Sam Hayes, executive director of the NC State Board of Elections, said last summer that he appreciated the collaboration between state and federal officials. 

“I am proud of the efforts of our investigators who worked this case prior to handing it off to our law enforcement partners at the FBI. Nothing is more critical to our democracy than confidence in our electoral process, which is why vigorous enforcement of our election laws must be a priority,” said Hayes. “The NC State Board of Elections team continues to stand ready to assist the US Attorney’s Office as they investigate and prosecute voter fraud in North Carolina.” 

According to NCSBE records, a voter with the same name has been casting ballots in New Hanover and Pender counties since 2004. Court records show prosecutors have not indicated that they are investigating any additional illegal voting outside the 2022 and 2024 elections.

Andy Jackson, director of the John Locke Foundation’s Civitas Center for Public Integrity, told Carolina Journal this type of fraud is hard to protect against.

“The kind of election fraud Mr. Bouchard committed is difficult to detect and prevent. North Carolina does not have citizenship verification for voting, and checking a box on the registration form declaring that you are a citizen will hardly deter someone who is committed to committing fraud,” said Jackson.

“Canadian pleads guilty to illegally voting in NC federal elections” was originally published on www.carolinajournal.com.