- Gloria Torres was convicted of voting abuse in Arizona in 2020
- Last month, she was approved by the city council as vice mayor of her city
- The decision left many in the community questioning local corruption
A local politician convicted of voter fraud was appointed vice mayor of San Luis, Arizona, during a city council meeting last month.
Democrat Gloria Torres was appointed to her new post in December, just six months after pleading guilty to conspiracy and vote tampering charges dating back to the controversial 2020 election.
The serious election charges were cited after a two-year investigation by the Attorney General's Office and the Yuma County Sheriff's Office as evidence that Torres and others illegally harvested voting rights during the July 2020 primary.
Hidden video surveillance footage turned over by two vigilant Yuma residents became the key piece of evidence leading to the convictions of Torres, Nadia Guadalupe Lizarraga Mayor, former San Luis Mayor Guillermina Fuentes and Alma Yadira Juarez.
Torres was eventually placed on probation for two years, after which she shockingly chose to remain in local government, a decision that underscored the issue of corruption within local government.
Gloria Torres was appointed vice mayor of San Luis, Arizona, last month despite a recent conviction for voter fraud related to the 2020 election
Torres was charged by Arizona authorities and ultimately convicted of crimes related to a July 2020 election campaign of which she was a part
Despite her criminal past, Torres' appointment was officially proposed by outgoing Vice Mayor Luis Cabrera – the suggestion was accepted by a slim margin in a 4-3 council vote.
Garcia Snyder, a candidate for the Arizona House in Legislative District 25, which includes Yuma, said he is both “outraged and disappointed that a convicted voter abuser has been elevated to this leadership position.”
“The fact that a majority of the Council appears to have so little respect for our laws is an insult to residents, especially in the Latino community. We are tired of this kind of corruption and the Democrats who so blatantly flaunt it.”
He suggested that Torres' retention of power is indicative of a “corrupt hold” Democrats hold over Latino communities.
“Promoting a condemned polling place should be a wake-up call to the Hispanic community in San Luis and surrounding areas,” he said.
'We've had enough of these jokes and low standards. I see my fellow Latinos migrating to conservatives like me, who have high standards and share their values and their language,” he continued before adding in Spanish:
“Save your family, your money, your opportunities, and most of all, the American dream. Vote with the Conservative party “The Real Party of Hispanics.”
Vote counters during the controversial 2020 election in Arizona, where massive allegations of voter fraud occurred in the aftermath of the official vote count
San Luis, Arizona in Yuma County, where Torres served on the local government for many years. Her career was colored by questionable judgment and allegations of corruption
Torres has long been a source of controversy in local politics. Her questionable competence and ethics have haunted her since she was first elected to the San Luis City Council.
In May 2020, a performance audit by the Arizona Auditor General found that Arizona District 32, where Torres' administration was at the time, had “paid local elementary school employees for time not worked” and “wasted $65,000 on unnecessary expenditure'. travel” and failed to properly oversee the transportation program.
In 2023, Arizona State House representatives noted that many of District 32's problems had never really been resolved and had resulted in employees stealing thousands of dollars from local taxpayers.