As Canadian Denis Bouchard learned he would face two months in federal prison for voting in North Carolina elections, M.D. Kittle of the Federalist documented another case in a northeastern state involving an alleged illegal voter from north of the border.
Another day, another foreign national charged with voting in U.S. elections — and yet another example of why failure to pass the SAVE America Act is not an option.
On Tuesday, the Department of Justice announced authorities had arrested Sunny Manhertz, 40, of Saugus, Massachusetts. The noncitizen has been charged with unlawful voting by an alien and one count of “the procurement, casting, or tabulation of ballots that are known to be materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent under state law,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.
Manhertz, a Canadian citizen and legal permanent resident of the United States, is accused of voting in multiple federal elections, including the 2012, 2016, 2020, and 2024 general elections. Federal authorities allege that Manhertz in 2016 lied on his Massachusetts voter registration form, checking “Yes” to the form’s question: “Are you a Citizen of the United States of America?” He did so, the complaint alleges, under penalty of perjury.
If convicted on both charges, the noncitizen could face up to five years in prison, a maximum of four years supervised release and a combined fine up $350,000, the U.S. Attorney’s office said.
The complaint states that Manhertz has been a lawful permanent resident of the United States since 1987 but has never applied for U.S. citizenship. In June 2024, Manhertz filled out and returned a form for registered voters, according to the complaint. He checked the box that stated, “I am still living in the Town of Saugus at the same address,” the Department of Homeland Security Investigations alleges.
