A screenshot of Gaea Powell from a video uploaded to YouTube on June 14, 2017. 

Gaea Powell echoed a core idea from the Make America Great Again movement when she ran for San Luis Obispo County clerk-recorder earlier this year, arguing for new voter ID rules to improve “election integrity” in the Central California county. 

But it turns out this conservative candidate wasn’t following election laws herself. 

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A county jury found Powell guilty on nine counts of election fraud last week, including lying about her residence, unlawfully registering to vote and fraudulently voting. The charges stem from 2022 and 2024 elections, when Powell ran for mayor of Arroyo Grande, a small town near Pismo Beach. 

Powell declined an SFGATE interview request but shared a statement that said she plans to appeal the case. 

“I respect the jury’s role. But I am deeply disappointed by today’s verdict,” Powell’s statement said. “I have maintained from the beginning, and I maintain today, that I did not knowingly deceive anyone and did not act with fraudulent intent.”

FILE: Voters cast their........

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