A Texas man is facing felony charges for allegedly voting illegally in two elections.
Hervis Rogers of Harris was recently indicted on two illegal voting charges for voting in the 2018 midterm elections and the 2020 Democratic presidential primary contest, according to court records.
Rogers is accused of violating state law that prohibits voting “in an election in which the person knows the person is not eligible to vote.”
Rogers was sentenced to 25 years in jail in 1995 for burglary and intent to commit theft, according to local media. He was released in 2004, but remained on parole until June 2020.
Texas law bars convicted felons from voting until they’ve finished their sentence, including probation.
“Hervis is a felon rightly barred from voting under TX law,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, said in a social media statement.
“I prosecute voter fraud everywhere we find it!” he added.
Rogers attracted media attention for waiting in line for hours to vote last year. The Texan, a media outlet, found that Rogers was convicted of a felony, which would mean Rogers voted illegally.
Harris County Republican precinct chair and attorney Rachel Hooper later filed a formal complaint with the Texas Secretary of State’s office. Hooper noted that a voter registration form that Rogers signed stated that he must not have been convicted of a felony or, if he was, he must have completed his sentence or have received a pardon.
Rogers’ bail was set at $100,000.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas is helping represent the defendant.
“Mr. Rogers made headlines after waiting hours for what he thought was his civic duty, and was very proud of that,“ Andre Segura, an attorney with the union, told The Associated Press. ”We shouldn’t be prosecuting people for innocent mistakes.”
