Perry County Commission Chairman Albert Turner, Jr. Indicted on Voter Fraud Charges

Perry County Commission Chairman Albert Turner, Jr. – Photo from Perry County, Alabama government website

Perry County Commission Chairman Albert Turner, Jr., has been indicted on felony and misdemeanor counts of voter fraud, according to Secretary of State John Merrill and District Attorney Michael Jackson.

In a statement from Merrill’s office, it was announced that Turner has been indicted for voting multiple times and inserting multiple completed ballots into the tabulator at a polling location in Perry County during the May 24, 2022, primary election.

The statement says in the November 8, 2022, general election, Turner has been indicted for ballot harvesting. It is alleged that Turner presented multiple completed absentee ballots for mailing from the U.S. Post Office.

District Attorney Jackson says he has “…heard the cry from the citizens and the people running for office to clean up the elections in the Black Belt.”

Jackson says anyone who has any information on either of these indictments should call the Attorney General’s Office or the Secretary of State’s Office.

Merrill spoke during a news conference relating to the number of voter fraud convictions since he took office in 2015. He says Alabama has had seven convictions of voter fraud and three elections overturned within the last eight years.

When asked if this could affect the outcome of any of the elections held in May or in the general election, Merrill said, “It is not appropriate at this time to comment because a lot of variables that factor into that decision and these matters are currently under investigation.

“Since January 19, 2015, we have worked extraordinarily hard to make it easy to vote and hard to cheat in Alabama.  While the accused is innocent until proven guilty, it is important to know that this incident, just like the other 1,805 incidents we have investigated over the last eight years, will receive the full attention of this office as we confirm for the people for the State of Alabama that we are the gold standard for election administration in the United States.”

Merrill will leave office as secretary of state on Monday, January 16. He could not seek re-election due to term limits. Jackson will also leave office Monday after losing his re-election bid.

If you have any information relating to instances of voter fraud, please contact the secretary of state’s elections division at (334) 242-7210.