Overview

• An August 1 federal court filing alleges Smartmatic overbilled Los Angeles County for voting machines and funneled the excess into a slush fund used to bribe officials.
• Prosecutors say the Florida case centers on alleged bribery tied to the Philippines but they intend to introduce evidence involving Los Angeles and Venezuela to show a broader pattern.
• The filing describes a practice of adding $10 to $50 per machine in multiple jurisdictions, with prosecutors planning to present financial records, witness testimony, and company communications.
• L.A. County’s registrar says the contract was competitively awarded, the department has seen no evidence of the surcharges, and prosecutors have not contacted the office.
• County emails and texts cited in court records depict close interactions between Smartmatic staff and Registrar Dean Logan, while Fox News seeks related county records for its defense in Smartmatic’s defamation suit.