VA-02: Third former campaign staffer for Scott Taylor indicted
A third member of ex-Rep. Scott Taylor’s 2018 campaign staff is facing an election fraud charge after being indicted Tuesday by a Virginia Beach grand jury.
The indictment against Heather Guillot, who served as a consultant for Taylor’s reelection bid, stems from a petition scandal that rocked the former U.S. congressman’s campaign two years ago. Guillot is accused of submitting forged signatures in an effort to get a spoiler candidate on the ballot that year.
Election fraud is a felony in Virginia, punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a $2,500 fine.
John Beamer, the special prosecutor overseeing the case, said Tuesday that the two-year investigation isn’t over yet and that he expects to seek at least one more indictment. He said that no one has been cleared, including Taylor. The one-term Republican lost the 2018 race to Democrat Elaine Luria, but is challenging her again this year.
Taylor’s campaign manager, Regan Roberts, issued a statement stressing that her candidate had “no knowledge of any wrongdoing” by his former staffers, and that he would never condone their “unethical decisions.”
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