Election officials investigate initiative fraud

OLYMPIA — State officials said they’re investigating a possible case of fraud on a small number of petitions supporting Initiative 1098, the proposed state income tax on high earners.

State Elections Director Nick Handy said it appears to be “an isolated problem” of one signature-gatherer submitting 20 petitions with possibly falsified signatures. Overall, the I-1098 campaign submitted nearly 25,000 petition sheets for verification.

Secretary of State Sam Reed’s office plans to turn a report over to the appropriate authorities within a few days. Handy said the investigation should not affect the overall signature check for I-1098.

I-1098 spokesman Sandeep Kaushik said the campaign has zero tolerance for fraud, and is cooperating with the state.