California girl charged after registering canine to vote says it was a check

A California girl who registered her canine to vote as a stunt to reveal election loopholes says the transfer backfired — touchdown her with a number of felony prices after her repeated makes an attempt to carry it to the eye of authorities.

Laura Yourex registered her Boxer, Maya, to vote throughout the 2020 election to reveal potential vulnerabilities within the state’s voter registration system, a weak point critics have lengthy warned about however say has gone largely unaddressed.

However what she thought would spark reform as an alternative become a nightmare that noticed her charged with voter fraud.

“If any person had checked out it, if any person did one thing about it… however no one cares,” Yourex informed The Submit.

The Orange County girl mentioned she carried out the stunt after receiving six voter registration playing cards at her Costa Mesa house, regardless of having solely two eligible voters residing there.

“I believe that’s actually what sort of set me off, we’ve got two folks residing on this home — my husband and I — and we received six playing cards to register to vote,” she mentioned. “I used to be like, nicely, that’s ridiculous.”

So Yourex determined to “check” the system by seeing if her canine may register and and get despatched a poll.

“For those who have a look at the precise type that I despatched in, it’s actually a made-up title, made-up birthday, no Social Safety quantity in any respect,” Yourex mentioned. “The one factor that was actual on it was my tackle.”

Weeks later, Maya acquired a mail-in poll.

Yourex mentioned she instantly contacted the Orange County Registrar of Voters to report what had occurred, however claims nobody responded.

She mentioned she repeatedly tried to alert officers between 2020 and 2025, even reaching out to former Huntington Seaside Metropolis Lawyer Michael Gates via a pal.

“I’ve given my image of Maya and her poll, and given my cellphone quantity, and would by no means hear from anyone,” Yourex defined.

“It’s not one thing I simply gave up on, I stored attempting to get somebody to concentrate to it. It’s not like they lastly found it, it’s that I stored pushing till any person paid consideration.”

When investigators lastly contacted her in August 2025, she thought motion was lastly being taken.

“I keep in mind the primary phrases out of my mouth when she mentioned, ‘Hello, we’re trying into your canine being registered to vote.’ Actually, the primary phrases out of my mouth had been: ‘Thank God, lastly, somebody’s trying into this,’” Yourex mentioned.

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As an alternative, prosecutors hit her 5 prices, together with a felony depend of procuring or providing a false or cast doc to be filed, two felony counts of casting a poll when not entitled to vote, and a felony depend of registering a non-existent individual to vote.

Orange County officers mentioned Maya was not not solely registered to vote — however to solid ballots within the 2021 gubernatorial recall and the 2022 major, although the latter was challenged and rejected.

On April 10, 4 of felony prices had been dismissed whereas the remaining depend of registering a nonexistent individual was decreased to a misdemeanor.

“I actually don’t really feel like anyone wished to do something about it, however due to the best way I went about bringing it to their consideration, I don’t suppose they’d a selection,” Yourex mentioned.

Her sentencing is scheduled for October.

The case now sits on the heart of a broader political battle over election safety in California.

Below present state regulation, voters should not required to indicate ID when casting a poll. Identification is often offered on the registration stage, whereas mail-in ballots depend on signature verification quite than photograph ID.

A proposed statewide voter ID initiative, backed by Republican lawmakers, would require photograph ID for in-person voting and extra figuring out data for mail-in ballots. Organizers say they’ve gathered greater than 1.3 million signatures to qualify the measure for the 2026 poll.

“There’s fraud occurring, , it might be small, nevertheless it doesn’t take plenty of votes to vary the end result of an election,” Riverside County Rep. Ken Calvert informed The Submit.

“This isn’t a radical thought, Individuals use an ID each day of their life. That is one thing that simply makes widespread sense.”

Whereas election specialists broadly agree voter fraud within the U.S. is uncommon, the problem has develop into a touchstone level for the Trump administration.

Influencer Nick Shirley has drawn consideration to voter fraud in California with viral movies claiming registrations are linked to every little thing from UPS shops to vacant buildings.

Yourex, who helps voter ID necessities, mentioned she nonetheless believes within the system — however thinks it wants a overview.

“The system itself, I believe, is an efficient system however I believe it simply must have tighter rules,” she mentioned, including that “looks as if these officers are trying the opposite manner.”

“You may’t cease what you don’t search for, proper?” she requested.

For her half, Yourex says she’s accomplished attempting to pressure change.

“I can’t change it, so I’m not going to consider it,” she mentioned. “I don’t spend plenty of time attempting to consider issues I don’t perceive.”