PROVIDENCE – The women at the center of the signature scandal during Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos’ failed congressional campaign in 2023 has been spared prison time, WPRI-TV CBS 12 reported Monday.
Holly McClaren
changed her plea in R.I. Superior Court Monday to no contest, meaning she accepts the conviction as though a guilty plea has been entered but does not admit guilt, WPRI reported. She was sentenced to three years of unsupervised release and is allowed to relocate to Virginia.
McClaren initially pleaded not guilty in 2024 to two felony counts of violating nomination papers and two misdemeanor counts of giving false documents to an agent, employee or public official last year after she was indicted by a grand jury.
The charges claimed McClaren knowingly falsified nomination papers and caused them to be submitted on behalf of Matos to boards of canvassers within
Jamestown and
Newport between July 11-13, 2023.
McClaren's Harmony Solutions was hired by the Matos campaign to collect the signatures needed to get on the ballot for the 1st Congressional District Democratic primary.
However, the nomination papers came under scrutiny in July 2023 after three municipal boards of canvassers flagged fake signatures on documents many said they never signed. Others included signatures of dead people.
Those nomination paper submissions allegedly from McClaren triggered a wave of investigations
both at the local and state levels.
Signatures reportedly found on papers for Matos’ campaign were either forged or of deceased residents. Then-Newport Canvassing Clerk Stephen Waluk told Providence Business News at the time the paper with the questionable signatures was submitted by McClaren.
Discrepancies were also reportedly found in
Barrington and
East Providence.
Matos’ campaign at the time said it was “deeply disappointed and angry” about the reports of fraudulent signatures. During
a candidate debate at Roger Williams University last August, Matos said she took responsibility for the signatures submitted on her behalf. She also reiterated that she had “more than enough signatures” to qualify for the ballot and that she “didn’t need this” controversy.
“The person [who submitted the fraudulent signatures] who I trusted lied to us, and I took responsibility for that,” Matos said during the debate. “But I am the candidate here on this stage with the most experience to run for office.”
A month later, the R.I. Board of Elections
ruled that while Matos’ campaign had more than enough valid signatures for Matos to be eligible for the ballot, the board still had questions about the signatures themselves.
Matos was never accused of being involved in the scheme. In statement Monday, the Lieutenant Governor said she was happy to have her name cleared by the conviction.
I have supported this investigation at every step in the hopes that the truth would come to light," Matos said in her statement. "With this case settled, the facts are clear: Holly McClaren committed a serious crime that undermined the sanctity of our state’s free and fair elections. I'm grateful to the law enforcement officers who handled this investigation thoroughly and professionally and whose work ultimately led to today's results."
The signature scandal quickly dominated the campaign of Matos, who was initially seen by some as the front-runner in the 11-candidate Democratic primary. Matos ended up finishing fourth, with Gabe Amo winning the primary. Amo went on to win the 1st Congressional District seat in November.
McClaren is the second Matos campaign worker charged in connection with the signature scandal. Johnston resident Christopher Cotham was also charged in early April with two felony counts of falsely making a nomination paper, and two misdemeanor counts of submitting nomination papers to election officials containing information known to be false. Cotham pleaded not guilty to the charges.
(UPDAT: Corrects last name to McClaren, adds statement from Matos in 12th and 13th paragraphs)
