Middletown Man Charged In Connection With Forged Signatures Sent To Registrar Of Voters

MIDDLETOWN, CT — Chief State’s Attorney Patrick J. Griffin Wednesday announced that a Middletown man has been arrested and charged in connection with submitting numerous forged signatures on petitions to the Democratic Registrar of Voters in Middletown in an effort to have his name included on the August 2024 ballot for Democratic State Representative in the 33rd General Assembly District.

Inspectors from the Statewide Prosecution Bureau in the Office of the Chief State's Attorney on June 11 arrested Robert Hoggard, 33, of Middletown, and charged him with 14 counts of forgery in the second degree, along with six counts of perjury, Griffin said.

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In January 2025, the State Elections Enforcement Commission referred the matter to the Division of Criminal Justice, charging that that Hoggard submitted nominating petition pages to the Middletown Registrar of Voters in June 2024 that contained forged signatures and "falsified circulator certifications."

An investigation showed that in 2024, Griffin sought to run for office representing the 33rd District as a Democrat, but the Democratic Party did not choose him as its endorsed candidate, Griffin said.

Connecticut law allows non-endorsed candidates to petition their way onto the primary ballot and in Hoggard's case, he needed to collect signatures from Democratic voters who live in the 33rd District, Griffin said. Prior to submission of the petition forms to the Democratic Registrar of Voters, he was, by law, required to sign before a notary public attesting to the accuracy of the petition's contents and that each signature on the petition was signed in his presence, Griffin said.

Officials reviewing the petitions later received complaints from registered voters stating that they did not sign the petition, Griffin said.

The Statewide Prosecution Bureau obtained a warrant for Hoggard’s arrest after conducting a criminal investigation into SEEC’s referral.

Hoggard was released on a promise to appear in Superior Court in Middletown.