ALBANY – Trial testimony is underway in U.S. District Court in Albany involving three Rensselaer County officials who are charged with violating the constitutional rights of voters by their alleged conspiracy to rig elections back in 2021.

Richard Crist, James Gordon, and Leslie Wallace are all charged with conspiracy to violate constitutional rights of voters. Gordon is also charged with witness tampering. Wallace faces a charge of lying to the FBI.

In his opening argument to jurors, Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Clymer said: “This case is about a conspiracy — a criminal agreement not carried out by organized crime or a street gang. They were government officials.”

Clymer continued, “They were able to get their hands on absentee ballots and use them to vote over and over and over again for the preferred candidate, and that watered down the vote for everyone else.”

Clymer asserted that Rensselaer County Executive Steve McLaughlin is not charged in the conspiracy, but he was clearly the person the defendants were trying to help get re-elected — because their jobs depended on it.

Lauren Owens, an attorney for Rich Crist argued to jurors: “This is a case about checks and balances. It’s a case about employment practices and who has authority in Rensselaer County. It is a case about a fundamental misunderstanding of election law.”

Meanwhile, Paul DerOhannesian, who represents James Gordon, said: “Jim Gordon was doing what many people in this country do, he was urging people to vote. It was not about intending to commit a crime. It was about doing what he believed was lawful.”

DerOhannesian went on to criticize the investigation, claiming, “My client’s arrest came after careless, sloppy, and reckless efforts by the FBI. The information gathered during their investigation was riddled with confusion, fallible memories, and inconsistencies.”

Former Rensselaer County District Attorney Joel Abelove is representing Leslie Wallace. In his opening, Abelove stated: “You barely heard my client’s name mentioned in the government’s opening argument. That’s because her involvement in this case was so miniscule that by the time this case is over you’ll wonder what he was doing sitting here in this courtroom.”

The government’s witness list contains 50 names, including six FBI agents. The trial is expected to last about three weeks.