State prosecutors in Michigan announced criminal charges in July against the 16 Republicans who served as fake electors in 2020, a watershed moment in the still-ongoing federal and state investigations into the 2020 election aftermath.
Some of the GOP electors in Michigan were local activists who were recruited to serve as “fake electors,” all while inaccurately believing there was still a chance that then-President Donald Trump might secure a second consecutive term. Others were well-connected GOP operatives. The group of 16 fake electors includes current and former state GOP officials, a Republican National Committee member, a sitting mayor, a school board member and Trump supporters who were the plaintiffs in a frivolous lawsuit that tried to overturn the 2020 results.
They all pleaded not guilty to the felony charges they are facing.
After the 2020 election wrapped up, some of these individuals publicly said they didn’t realize they were potentially breaking the law by signing the fake certificates. Others are still peddling the lie that the election was stolen. CNN has reached out to the 16 fake electors for comment about the criminal charges.
Here’s what we know about the 16 fake electors facing state charges.
Meshawn Maddock, 55, was previously co-chair of the Michigan Republican Party and is married to a GOP member of the Michigan House of Representatives. CNN previously reported that she publicly bragged about the Trump campaign’s involvement in the fake elector scheme. The Maddocks spoke at a pro-Trump event in Washington, DC, one day before the insurrection on January 6, 2021, and Meshawn Maddock was in DC on the day of the attack, though she wasn’t at the US Capitol. Regarding the charges, she told CNN, “This is part of a national coordinated lawfare to stop Trump. (Michigan Attorney General) Dana Nessel and (Justice Department special counsel) Jack Smith are constructing a banana republic where political opponents are harassed, bankrupted and jailed and voter fraud has now morphed into their prosecutorial fraud.”
Kathy Berden, 70, is one of the Republican National Committee members representing Michigan. She was previously one of the pro-Trump delegates at the Republican National Convention in summer 2016.
Marian Sheridan, 69, is the grassroots vice chairwoman of the Michigan Republican Party. She was also one of the plaintiffs in a frivolous lawsuit that tried to overturn the results of the 2020 election in Michigan.
Kent Vanderwood, 69, is the current mayor of Wyoming, Michigan, a small city near Grand Rapids. He was previously a longtime member of the Wyoming City Council and won the mayor’s race last year. During the 2020 campaign, he was chair of the 2nd District Republican Party, according to local press reports.
Stanley Grot, 71, is the Shelby Township clerk, in a suburb of Detroit. He was appointed in 2012.
Amy Facchinello, 55, was elected in 2020 as a member of the school board in Grand Blanc, which is a suburb of Flint, Michigan. She was previously vice chairwoman of the Genesee County Republican Party. CNN previously reported that she has repeatedly promoted QAnon-related material on her social media accounts.
Mari-Ann Henry, 65, is the treasurer of the 7th Congressional District Republican Committee, an area that includes Michigan’s capital city of Lansing and several surrounding counties. She was formerly the president of the Greater Oakland Republican Club. Her attorney, George Brown, said in a statement that her actions in 2020 were “ceremonial” and that the charges are “spurious and unsupported by the facts.”
Michele Lundgren, 73, was the Republican nominee in 2022 for a Detroit-based seat in the Michigan House of Representatives, but lost the heavily Democratic district in a landslide. Regarding the fake electors plot, she told CNN last year, “We were called on the phone, asked if we’d come and support President Trump and sign something, and we all went to Lansing. … We were just told to show up and sign this paper. If we had any information about it being untoward or illegal, we would not have done it.”
Clifford Frost, 75, is a realtor who unsuccessfully ran for the Macomb County Board of Commissioners last year. He was a GOP poll-watcher in Detroit during the 2020 primary, according to the Detroit Free Press. In the days before charges were filed, he shared pro-Trump conspiracy theories about alleged voter fraud on social media. His attorney Kevin Kijewski told CNN: “Mr. Frost is innocent. … We intend to show that these charges fail to sufficiently state any violation of Michigan law and we will seek their dismissal as a matter of law.”
John Haggard, 82, was one of the plaintiffs in a frivolous lawsuit that tried to overturn the 2020 results in Michigan. The lawsuit was dismissed and the lawyers who brought it were sanctioned by a judge. He served as a legitimate Trump elector from Michigan in 2016, when Trump narrowly won the state. Regarding the fake electors plot, he told CNN last year, “We signed papers that said we won the election. And the numbers said we didn’t. I guess we don’t have the right to say we won. Apparently our attorney general doesn’t believe in freedom of speech.” He is an Army veteran, according to his lawyer.
Timothy King, 56, was also one of the plaintiffs in a frivolous lawsuit that tried to overturn the 2020 results in Michigan. The lawsuit was dismissed and the lawyers who brought it were sanctioned by a judge.
Rose Rook, 81, is a member of the executive committee of the Van Buren County Republicans, according to its website.
Mayra Rodriguez, 64, is a lawyer who is facing potential disciplinary proceedings with the Attorney Discipline Board, stemming from her participation in the fake electors plot, according to the Detroit Free Press.
Hank Choate, 72, is a dairy farmer who met with Trump during a White House event about agriculture in April 2017. The event was also attended by then-Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue.
Ken Thompson, 68 was brought in to replace one of the original GOP electors that was recruited to serve before the 2020 election. A Michigan GOP official testified to the House select committee that investigated January 6, 2021, that Thompson replaced an original elector who was “uncomfortable with the whole thing” and refused to participate.
James Renner, 76, was also brought in later in the process to replace one of the original GOP electors. He is from Lansing and is a retired police officer, according to his attorney.
This story has been updated with additional information and comment.
CORRECTION: This story has been updated with the correct spelling of fake elector Mari-Ann Henry’s name and to accurately describe the location of Stanley Grot’s home township.
CNN’s Zachary Cohen contributed reporting
