Republican Activist Faces Historic Conviction in Arizona’s Fake Elector Scandal

Loraine Pellegrino, a past president of the Ahwatukee Republican Women, has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of filing a false document.

PHOENIX — A significant development has emerged in Arizona’s fake elector case. Republican activist Loraine Pellegrino, who falsely claimed Donald Trump won Arizona in the 2020 election, has become the first person convicted in this matter.

Pellegrino, a former president of Ahwatukee Republican Women, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of filing a false document, according to Richie Taylor, spokesperson for the Arizona Attorney General’s Office. While court records of her guilty plea have yet to be posted, it has been confirmed that she was sentenced to unsupervised probation. Originally, she faced nine felony charges.

This case involved charges against 17 individuals, including ten Republicans who falsely declared themselves as “duly elected and qualified” electors, asserting Trump had won Arizona. President Joe Biden secured the state by a margin of 10,457 votes. Pellegrino’s attorney, Joshua Kolsrud, noted that his client accepted responsibility for her actions and chose a plea deal to move on from the incident.

In a related instance, Jenna Ellis, a former campaign attorney for Trump, entered a cooperation agreement with prosecutors. The remaining defendants, such as Trump’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani and former chief of staff Mark Meadows, have pleaded not guilty to conspiracy, fraud, and forgery charges.

On December 14, 2020, Pellegrino, along with ten other Arizona Republican electors, signed the false document in Phoenix. A video of the event was shared on social media, and the document was later sent to Congress and the National Archives, where it was ultimately disregarded.

Arizona’s charges were revealed in late April, involving 11 Republicans, five lawyers linked to Trump, and two former aides. Trump was not charged but was identified as an unindicted co-conspirator in the indictment.

Authorities in Michigan, Nevada, Georgia, and Wisconsin have also pursued criminal charges related to the fake electors scheme.