A political consultant facing criminal charges for falsifying signatures on Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos’ campaign papers during the 2023 congressional special election changed her plea to no contest, avoiding potential prison time, as first reported by WPRI-TV 12.
Holly McClaren originally pleaded not guilty in May 2024 following a sealed grand jury indictment charging her with two felony counts of violating nomination papers and two misdemeanor counts of giving false documents to an agent, employee or public official. She appeared in Providence County Superior Court Monday and was sentenced to three years of unsupervised probation, according to news reports.
Court records of the plea and judge’s sentencing were not immediately available Monday.
John Grasso, McClaren’s attorney, did not return calls for comment Monday.
McClaren’s company, Harmony Solutions, was hired by Matos’ campaign during her 2023 primary run for the 1st Congressional District seat. Once considered a frontrunner in the 11-way primary for the open congressional seat, Matos ultimately finished fourth, dogged for much of her campaign in the accusations of signature fraud.
Yet Matos maintained her innocence even as the state opened a criminal investigation into her campaign after local election administrators in three separate municipalities flagged nomination papers on the grounds of suspected signature fraud, including of dead residents.
McClaren was one of two people charged in the signature scandal, along with another campaign worker, Christopher Cotham.
Cotham also pleaded not guilty to the same four charges as McClaren. His case remains pending in Providence County Superior Court, according to the public court docket, with a pre-trial conference scheduled for June 25.
Matos in a statement Monday said the conviction has cleared her name.
“I have supported this investigation at every step in the hopes that the truth would come to light,” Matos said. “With this case settled, the facts are clear: Holly McClaren committed a serious crime that undermined the sanctity of our state’s free and fair elections. I’m grateful to the law enforcement officers who handled this investigation thoroughly and professionally and whose work ultimately led to today’s results.”
This story was originally published by the Rhode Island Current.
