Attorney General Peter F. Neronha and Colonel Darnell S. Weaver announced Friday that a Providence woman has been charged in Providence County Superior Court with knowingly falsifying and submitting nomination papers. The charges stem from an investigation by the Office of the Attorney General and the Rhode Island State Police into allegations of fraudulent nomination signatures during the 2023 First Congressional District Special Election.
On May 29, 2024, the Statewide Grand Jury returned a secret indictment charging Holly McClaren, 52, with two counts of falsely certifying nomination papers and two counts of filing false documents with a public official. The indictment was sealed, and a warrant was issued for McClaren. On May 31, McClaren voluntarily appeared in Providence County Superior Court, where the Court unsealed the indictment and she was arraigned.
The charges allege that between July 11 and July 13, 2023, McClaren knowingly falsified nomination papers and caused those papers to be submitted to the Jamestown and Newport Boards of Canvassers on behalf of Lt. Governor Sabina Matos. McClaren is scheduled for a pre-trial conference on August 8, 2024.
“The integrity of our electoral process is paramount, and allegations of this nature are taken very seriously,” said Attorney General Neronha. “We will continue to work diligently to ensure that those who seek to undermine the democratic process are held accountable.”
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