Bladen County political worker pleads not guilty to charges

RALEIGH, NC (AP) — A political operative accused by state authorities of orchestrating an absentee ballot fraud operation in a 2018 congressional election in North Carolina has entered not guilty pleas to separate federal charges.

Leslie McCrae Dowless Jr. faces four counts alleging he hid from the Social Security Administration over $100,000 in income for work performed for at least two candidates during the 2018 election.

No trial date was immediately set after Friday’s plea.

Dowless was at the center of a state investigation into illegal ballot “harvesting” in the 9th Congressional District campaign.

A trial on state charges against Dowless could occur this summer.