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Gov. Ron DeSantis had trouble voting because someone had falsely submitted a change of address under his name

Oct 29, 2020, 23:07 IST
Business Insider
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis speaks during a news conference at the Miami Beach Convention Center on the Army Corps' building of a coronavirus field hospital inside the facility, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Miami Beach, Florida, on April 8, 2020.Al Diaz/Pool via REUTERS
  • Florida Governor Ron DeSantis learned his primary address had been changed without his consent when he went to vote on Monday.
  • Investigators found his address had been changed through a web browser at a home in Naples, Florida.
  • Anthony Guevara, 20, was arrested by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and charged with altering a voter registration without consent and unauthorized access of a computer.
  • DeSantis was ultimately able to vote in the election.
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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis had trouble voting on Monday after his primary address was falsely changed by a man who illegally accessed the state system, officials said this week.

Anthony Guevara, 20, from Naples, Florida, was arrested by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and charged with altering a voter registration without consent and unauthorized access of a computer in connection to DeSantis' address change.

Collier County Sheriff's Office said in an incident report seen by NBC News that Guevara had changed DeSantis' primary address at the governor's mansion in Tallahassee to a home in West Palm Beach.

When DeSantis arrived at the Leon County Courthouse on Monday to cast his vote, a clerk told him his address had been changed. He was able to vote after sorting out the address issue, and worked with officials in Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Leon County elections office to find out who changed his residence, the Washington Post reported, citing court documents.

According to the sheriff's office report, investigators found DeSantis' address had been changed through a computer web browser at a home in Naples, where officials spoke with Guevara.

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The Associated Press reported that Guevara told investigators that he changed DeSantis' address through Leon County's elections website by using the governor's birthday, which he found on Wikipedia.

Officials believe Guevara also accessed voter registration information for US Sen. Rick Scott, Michael Jordan, and LeBron James. Officials say Guevara only made changes to DeSantis' registration.

Guevara's attorney, Mike Carr, told NBC News that the incident was a prank.

"It shows just how vulnerable the voting system is. Someone with no computer skills, no intent can go in and do this," Carr said. "He wasn't doing any hacking."

Florida Secretary of State Laurel Lee told AP that the state's election website and computer system are secure.

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"There is no evidence to suggest that this change was made through the Florida Department of State," Lee said. "We commend the Florida Department of Law Enforcement on their swift action to bring this malicious actor to justice. The situation was corrected immediately."

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