TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) – A 55-year-old Florida woman is behind bars for casting multiple ballots in an election for several years, according to Inspectors with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s Election Crime Unit.
Authorities said Cheryl Ann Leslie, 55, of Loxahatchee, who works as a physician assistant in Palm Beach County, was arrested on two counts of casting more than one ballot in an election – both third-degree felonies.
Investigators said Leslie voted in both the 2020 federal and state primary elections in Florida and Alaska. Her Alaska votes were said to be submitted by absentee ballot, and her Florida votes were submitted early, and in person in Palm Beach County.
When investigators questioned her, she told them her work as a physician assistant required extensive travel between several states. Leslie works with a senior care facility in Loxahatchee.
An investigation later revealed a “pattern of double voting” as Leslie was also accused of voting in both states in 2014, 2016, and 2018.
Leslie was booked into the Palm Beach County Jail.
Information on Leslie’s multi-state voting originated from the Secretary of State’s Office of Election Crimes and Security before it was forwarded to FDLE’s Election Crime Unit for further investigation.
“This arrest is yet another confirmation to every eligible Florida voter that the Department of State and FDLE are working together to ensure the integrity of their vote and Florida’s elections process,” said Secretary of State and Chief Election Officer Cord Byrd.