Woman who faces 80 years in prison for fake elector scheme says she was ‘duped’ by Trump’s lawyer into signing document

A woman who was indicted in Michigan for acting as a fake elector for former President Donald Trump says she was “duped” by one of his lawyers, the Washington Examiner reported.

Speaking to a local news outlet, 73-year-old Michele Lundgren said she was asked in December to attend a meeting at the Michigan Republican Party’s headquarters and sign a form swearing Trump had won the 2020 election. She says she initially signed a form stating she was present for the meeting, but claims her signature was then copied from the form and then placed on a document declaring her to be an elector.

“We signed a sign-in sheet with our names. It fits right into the real electoral ballot,” she said, adding that Trump lawyer Ian Northon “duped” her into thinking she was doing the right thing.

“I was an innocent little bystander in this whole thing, thinking I was doing my civic duty,” Lundgren said.

But according to Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, Lundgren and the 15 other people indicted in the scheme knew exactly what they were doing.

“The false electors’ actions undermined the public’s faith in the integrity of our elections and, we believe, also plainly violated the laws by which we administer our elections in Michigan,” Nessel said in a statement.

According to reports, some of the 16 indicted fake electors were local activists who believed Trump had won the 2020 election and still had a chance of serving a second term. As CNN points out, the group includes “current and former state GOP officials, a Republican National Committee member, a sitting mayor, a school board member and Trump supporters who were the plaintiffs in a frivolous lawsuit that tried to overturn the 2020 results.”

Many of the individuals claim they didn’t realize they were doing something illegal when they signed the fake election forms. The youngest person indicted in the scheme is 55-years-old, and the oldest is 82.

Lundgren faces up to 80 years in prison for her role in the scheme.

Image via Shutterstock.com

Sky Palma

Before launching DeadState back in 2012, Sky Palma has been blogging about politics, social issues and religion for over a decade. He lives in Los Angeles and also enjoys Brazilian jiu jitsu, chess, music and art.