The October 14, 2025, hearing of the Minnesota House Fraud Prevention and State Agency Oversight Policy Committee focused on a federal conspiracy case involving the submission of approximately 500 to 600 fraudulent voter registration applications.
The Scheme: A Nevada couple, Ronnie Williams and Lorraine Lee Combs (formerly of West St. Paul), conspired to generate fictitious names, addresses, and social security numbers for Minnesota voter registration forms during the 2021–2022 election cycle.
Motive: The individuals were paid "per application" by an unnamed entity referred to in court documents as "Foundation 1" (identified by hearing witnesses as the Anika Foundation).
Scope: The fraudulent applications were submitted across 13 Minnesota counties.
System Integrity: The scheme was detected when election workers in Carver County noticed discrepancies, leading to an FBI investigation.
Legal Outcome: Both individuals pleaded guilty in federal court to one felony count of conspiracy to commit voter registration fraud in June and July 2025.
