A MAGA candidate campaigned for ‘election integrity’ and voter ID rules. Then a jury found her guilty on nine counts of election fraud

A San Luis Obispo County jury last week found Gaea Powell guilty on nine counts of election fraud. The counts included lying about her residence, unlawfully registering to vote, and fraudulently voting, according to reporting on the case.

The charges grew out of the 2022 and 2024 elections, when Powell ran for mayor of Arroyo Grande, a small town near Pismo Beach. Earlier this year, she also ran for San Luis Obispo County clerk-recorder and argued for new voter ID rules that she said would improve “election integrity” in the Central California county.

According to SFGATE, she shared a statement saying she plans to appeal. “I respect the jury’s role. But I am deeply disappointed by today’s verdict,” the statement said. “I have maintained from the beginning, and I maintain today, that I did not knowingly deceive anyone and did not act with fraudulent intent.”

Conviction linked to her 2022 and 2024 campaigns for mayor

The San Luis Obispo County district attorney’s office said sentencing is set for Oct. 19. The office said in a news release that it was still determining a sentencing recommendation and did not state the maximum penalty she could face.

Powell told SFGATE by text message that she is facing as much as eight years in jail. Charges filed in April accused her of registering to vote and running for office while knowingly living outside city limits. Those charges also accused her of violating campaign finance laws.

Powell represented herself at trial. She alleged that evidence that would have vindicated her was excluded during the trial. “I openly discussed my living circumstances, sought guidance concerning my eligibility to run for office from election officials, and believed I was acting lawfully,” she said in the statement shared with SFGATE.

Powell often speaks at local public meetings. In 2023, she helped organize a rally for Moms for Liberty against diversity initiatives at nearby schools.

Her opponent in the 2024 mayor’s race criticized her for bringing graphic “pornography” to a public meeting. Powell said she found the material at a high school library.

After she lost the 2022 and 2024 mayor’s races, she ran for county clerk-recorder, the office that oversees elections in San Luis Obispo County. Her focus on election integrity comes amid broader national debates, as Trump promoted an Australian resident’s voter fraud arrest to attack Democrats.

She told the local chamber of commerce that she is “fearlessly advocating for reforms that strengthen election legitimacy, public trust, and civic responsibility – including voter identification, proof of citizenship, clean voter rolls, and transparent processes.” She finished third in the primary and did not advance to the general election.