A preliminary hearing was held in San Luis Obispo County Superior Court on Wednesday for former Arroyo Grande mayoral candidate Gaea Powell, who is charged with election fraud.
Powell ran for Arroyo Grande mayor in the 2022 and 2024 elections and was charged last June with eight felonies and one misdemeanor, including voter registration fraud, filing a false declaration of candidacy, fraudulent voting, failure to file campaign finance reports, and perjury by declaration.
She has pleaded not guilty and is representing herself in court.
One of the witnesses called to testify on Wednesday was her landlord, Carolyn Moffatt, who said she has been renting a unit to Powell and her husband for several years. It's located outside of the Arroyo Grande city limits on Heritage Lane.
Prosecutors introduced evidence that Powell registered to vote at an address on James Way within the Arroyo Grande city limits and used that same address when she ran for office.
Moffatt testified that she was under the impression Powell exclusively lived on her property and had expressed concerns first to Powell's husband and then to Powell about running for office.
Powell claims she was renting the James Way condo from Dr. Marquis David. On the witness stand, David admitted that he gave Powell access to the condo but there was no rental agreement, and to his knowledge, she never paid rent or left personal belongings there that would indicate she lived there.
The cross-examination of witnesses went on for hours, then the prosecution gave its argument. The judge then asked Powell for her testimony, which will continue on Thursday at 8:30 a.m.
Amid her court case, Powell is also running for San Luis Obispo County Clerk-Recorder. She faces the incumbent, Elaina Cano, and candidate Vanessa Rozo in the June Primary Election.
