Voter fraud: Massachusetts Democrat pleads guilty to voting in New Hampshire primary

BOSTON (Reuters) - New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation presidential nominating primary has long drawn activists from around New England who travel into the state to support their favored candidates in rallies and door-to-door visits to voters.

But one Massachusetts man went a step further, traveling to the state to cast a vote in the primaries that set U.S. President Barack Obama on course for the White House.

The man, Lorin Schneider, pleaded guilty on Monday to illegally voting in the 2008 and 2012 presidential primaries, both misdemeanor charges, and to voting in the 2012 presidential election, a felony.

It was the first time prosecutors have found an out-of-state voter casting a ballot in the widely watched primary.

"This is the first one I've prosecuted and I'm not aware of any others," said Stephen LaBonte, assistant attorney general.

LaBonte said that Schneider, a registered Democrat, had previously lived in Manchester, New Hampshire, but moved out of the state about two decades ago. He now lives in Carver, Massachusetts.

"It's unclear at what date he had moved away, but he continued to vote using his old address," LaBonte said.

An attorney for Schneider did not immediately respond to a request for comment. He was sentenced to serve one to three years in state prison, though he could avoid that with five years of good behavior, and to pay a $5,000 fine plus a 24 percent penalty.

(Reporting by Scott Malone; Editing by Jim Loney)

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