As signature deadline looms, petition fraudster gets prison time in 2022 scandal

Shawn Wilmoth, found guilty in a 2022 petition signature fraud scheme, was sentenced to a maximum of 20 in prison
He and Willie Reed were found guilty of multiple felony charges related to the scheme last month
One candidate kicked off the 2022 ballot — Perry Johnson — is running for governor again and must submit signatures next month

One of two men found guilty of participating in a signature fraud scandal that knocked several candidates off Michigan’s 2022 ballot was sentenced Tuesday to at least four years in prison.

A Macomb County judge determined that Shawn Wilmoth should spend between four and 20 years behind bars for his role in the scheme, which defrauded several Republican gubernatorial hopefuls four years ago.

In early February, a jury found Wilmoth and co-defendent Willie Reed guilty of multiple felonies, including conducting a criminal enterprise and several counts of election law forgery.

Reed was initially scheduled for sentencing on Wednesday as well, but the hearing was delayed until March 31. It was not immediately clear why he wasn’t sentenced alongside Wilmoth.

Wilmoth “ran a calculated scheme that sabotaged candidates and stripped Michigan voters of choices in the 2022 election,” Attorney General Nessel said in a statement late Tuesday. “…We remain committed to fighting to hold those who commit election fraud accountable.”

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Among those kicked off the ballot in 2022 were GOP frontrunners James Craig and Perry Johnson, who said he submitted a victim impact statement to the court for Wilmoth’s sentencing.

“This guilty verdict is a clear and undisputable determination of fraud being committed against five Republican candidates and directly benefiting the opposing party and their candidates,” Johnson wrote. “Simply put, every voter in this state was a victim of their fraud.”

In addition to prison time, Wilmoth was ordered to pay $376,601 in restitution to his victims, which include Donna Brandenburg and former Michigan State Police Capt. Michael Brown.

The sentencing came 1,000 days after charges were first announced against Reed, Wilmoth and Wilmoth’s wife, Jamie Wilmoth-Goodin, the latter of whom was found not guilty on all charges Feb. 9.

It also comes just 34 days before the April 21 candidate filing deadline for 2026 gubernatorial candidates to submit enough valid voter signatures to qualify for Republican and Democratic primaries on Aug. 4.

Johnson, who is running for governor again, said his campaign is texting anyone who signs his petitions this year to seek their confirmation as part of a “first-of-its-kind petition verification system designed to ensure complete accuracy and eliminate fraud.”

Ahead of the 2022 election, five Republican gubernatorial candidates and three judicial candidates used firms owned and operated by Wilmoth and Reed to collect the signatures they required to qualify for the ballot.

But after those candidates turned in their nominating petitions, thousands of their signatures were found to be fraudulent, and the candidates were kept off the ballot.