A woman from Washington has been taken into custody, accused of submitting several fake mail-in ballots during the 2024 general election.

Esperanza Contreras, 52, who manages an apartment complex in Pasco, located in the Tri-Cities area of Washington about 220 miles southeast of Seattle, faces these allegations.

The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office initiated an investigation into Contreras in October following a report from a prosecuting attorney in Washington state about a suspicious ballot counted in the recent presidential election.

This questionable ballot originated from a voter who had relocated to Hermiston, Oregon, just south of Pasco.

Although she had properly updated her voter registration to her new Oregon address, Franklin County mistakenly sent a mail-in ballot to her previous residence.

Investigators discovered that this Washington ballot was completed, submitted under the voter’s name, and ultimately counted in the election.

When investigators looked into the Washington address, they discovered that three additional suspicious ballots had been sent to former tenants of the apartment building, all of which had been submitted in the election.

Authorities now believe that Contreras, who as the building’s manager had access to any mail sent there, filled out the ballots meant for former tenants and mailed them back to the Franklin County Auditor’s Office. 

A Washington woman named Esperanza Contreras, 52, has been arrested for submitting fraudulent mail-in ballots that were counted in the 2024 general election in Washington. Election workers in Washington are pictured here counting mail-in ballots in 2024

Investigators believe that Contreras filled out and submitted ballots meant for former tenants of the building she was managing

Contreras submitted the fraudulent ballots from Pasco, Washington, which is part of the state’s Tri-Cities region. The Columbia River passing between Pasco and Kennewick is pictured here

The auditor’s office signature checking system flagged one of those ballots as suspicious, so it was not counted, but the other three slipped through the cracks and were counted.

According to a press release from the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Contreras admitted to voting on all of the ballots and forging the signatures.

‘Voter fraud undermines the integrity of the electoral process and erodes public confidence in the fairness of elections,’ the press release said. 

‘The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office takes violations of election law seriously and remains committed to thoroughly investigating and pursuing election related violations.’

Contreras was arrested and booked into the Franklin County Jail on January 8. She now faces 12 felony charges related to voter fraud and identity theft, including first-degree identity theft, forgery and second-degree theft. 

Just the first-degree identity theft charge carries a maximum sentence of ten years in prison and a $20,000 fine, according to Washington state law. 

Although three of the fraudulent ballots submitted by Contreras were counted, none of the 2024 elections in Franklin County were determined by such a slim margin that year

Donald Trump won Franklin County in 2024 with 19,086 votes, which was about 60 percent of the total ballots cast

Although three of the fraudulent ballots submitted by Contreras were counted, none of the 2024 elections in Franklin County were determined by such a slim margin that year. 

It is unclear who Contreras allegedly voted for with the fraudulent ballots, and her party affiliation is not listed in public records, but Franklin County is solidly red and has voted for the Republican candidate in every presidential election since 2012. 

A total of 32,234 ballots were cast in Franklin County in the 2024 general election, according to county records. 

Donald Trump won the county with 19,086 votes, which was about 60 percent. Kamala Harris received 11,884 votes, which was a little more than 37 percent.