District Leader of the Bronx Board Of Elections Charged With Bribery, Extortion, Fraud, and Identity Theft
Poll workers direct voters at a community center in the Bronx in 2020. Prosecutors claim Bronx Board of Elections District Leader Nicole Torres demanded bribes in exchange for recommending poll workers and falsifying timecards. Editorial credit: Steve Sanchez Photos / Shutterstock.com.
Nicole Torres, 43, from the Bronx, New York, was indicted on Aug. 27 on charges including extortion, conspiracy, wire fraud, mail fraud and identity theft, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.
Accusations of Bribery, Records Falsification
Torres is the Republican District Leader– an elected position– in the Bronx, working for the New York Board of Elections (NYC-BOE). Prosecutors say she solicited payments for herself and a local organization called the Bronx Organization in exchange for paid positions as poll workers, according to the press release.
Torres is also accused of faking documents to make it appear that some poll workers worked during times and dates that they didn’t and allegedly split the extra paychecks among herself and others.
New York City has early voting policies that allow voters to vote in elections up to nine days before the election day, as well as the election day itself, the indictment details. This also allows poll workers to work ten days during the election cycle and make about $2,750 total for their time.
Poll workers can apply directly with the NYC-BOE or get a recommendation from the district leader, as stated in the indictment. However, poll workers recommended by the district leader are considered for employment before the ones who apply directly with the NYC-BOE.
Torres has been an employee of the NYC-BOE since 2016, but she became a district leader in 2019 for the New York 81st Assembly District, the indictment says. During her time with NYC-BOE, prosecutors accuse Torres of participating in two schemes.
Kickbacks for Recommendations
The first scheme reportedly happened between 2019 and 2024 when Torres allegedly required residents to pay around $150 for her, as a district leader, to recommend them for the poll worker positions in upcoming elections.
These payments allegedly went either to the Bronx Organization or directly to Torres, who personally received a total of about $28,000 in payments, according to the indictment. Torres allegedly demanded payment via money apps, checks and money orders. Prosecutors say Torres even altered money orders to put her name on the payee line so she could deposit them directly into her bank account, according to court documents.
Falsifying Work Records
The second scheme allegedly started in or around 2018 and continued until August of 2024, according to the indictment. In this scheme, Torres allegedly worked with co-conspirators to falsify NYC-BOE records that they call the “Form Booklet,” according to the indictment.
When “No-Show Poll Workers” didn’t come to work, Torres allegedly instructed the co-conspirators at different poll sites to fill out records with the workers’ information, including check-in and check-out times. This made it look like the missing poll workers were present, so they were paid.
But, instead of the money going to the workers, Torres and her co-conspirators received the salaries and allegedly split the money among themselves, court documents say. Correspondence about who would falsify the information and how the money would be split up was purportedly communicated in person, over the phone, and through text messages.
Torres allegedly confirmed that she listed a particular poll worker as present during March 2021, even though the person did not work that month, the indictment states. A co-conspirator received the worker’s check in the mail and allegedly shared it with Torres.
During the duration of this alleged scheme, Torres is accused of personally receiving at least $36,000.
The plea hearing has not yet been scheduled.
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