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Haywood man convicted of voter fraud

A Haywood County jury recently convicted Dewey George Gidcumb, 52, of Haywood County of felony voter fraud for voting twice in the 2016 Primary Elections in North Carolina.

Gidcumb voted during One-Stop Early Voting on March 3, 2016, and then voted a second time on Election Day on March 15, 2016, in the same Republican primary. Choices included candidates for president and governor. 

Robert Inman, director for the local Haywood County Board of Elections, caught the double vote and reported the activity to the North Carolina Board of Elections. After an investigation by election officials, District Attorney Ashley Welch indicted Gidcumb for voter fraud.

Gidcumb first claimed that he thought his second vote was in a different election. When pressed, he then claimed that he forgot that he voted the first time. However, prosecutors pointed out that Gidcumb was an experienced voter who had voted in each primary and general election since 1996 in Haywood County, and that he had even been a chairman of his local precinct.