GRAFTON - Jersey County State's Attorney Ben Goetten confirmed his office is investigating allegations of voter coercion coming from Grafton Tuesday afternoon.
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In a statement, Goetten said:
"I can confirm that my office has recently received at least two complaints alleging voter intimidation in the City of Grafton," he said in an email. "While I cannot comment on the details, if it appears there may be probable cause to move forward, I will likely turn these cases over to a special prosecution for review to avoid any potential conflicts."
These allegations reportedly come from an alderman allegedly telling city employees in the maintenance building they could be fired if they voted for the "wrong candidate," a source told Riverbender.com under the condition of anonymity.
Current Grafton Mayor Tom Thompson confirmed Tuesday he had heard such rumors, but said he was advised by the Grafton City Attorney to not comment on the matter, only officially saying he was aware of the matter, and knew it was being investigated by Goetten.
"It's not a secret in this town," Thompson said. "Everyone knows about the rumor, but we cannot verify them as facts at this time. It is currently being investigated by the state's attorney."
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