Former candidate gets jail time for violation
An Augusta man who ran for state representative was sentenced to seven days in jail for falsifying documents in an attempt to receive public campaign funding. Republican Michael Hein, who ran for the House District 57 seat, pleaded guilty in Kennebec County Superior Court to one count of willfully violating the Maine Clean Election Act, according to the Bangor Daily News.
Hein encouraged 15 people to falsely claim they made personal contributions to his campaign in order to qualify for public money under the Clean Election Act. Last month, he pleaded not guilty to a related charge of attempted theft by deception. As part of a plea deal, that charge was dropped, and he pleaded guilty to violating the Clean Election Act.
Hein allegedly signed forms showing 67 Maine people had given him $5 donations, exceeding the 60-donor threshold needed to qualify for $5,000 in Clean Election funding. He did not receive public funding. He also lost in the June 12 primary to Andrew Worcester, who since has withdrawn, according to the paper.
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