Authorities: Mexican man illegally voted in Texas for years

SAN ANTONIO – An official says a Mexican national who has been living in the San Antonio area for decades under a stolen identity voted regularly during that time, including in the 2016 election.

Sixty-three-year-old Enrique Salazar Ortiz pleaded guilty Thursday to federal charges including unlawful voting and aggravated identity theft.

Authorities say Salazar had assumed the name of a former San Antonio resident, Jesse H. Vargas Jr. The San Antonio Express-News reports that Salazar wouldn’t tell federal agents how many elections he voted in, but that he admitted he had voted in the 2016 election.

Bexar (bayr) County elections administrator Jacque Callanen told the newspaper that records show someone with Vargas’ name and birth date has voted in every general election since at least 1994. A relative of the 57-year-old Vargas said he moved out of Bexar County as a teenager.

President Donald Trump has made claims of widespread voter fraud, but Justice Department leaders consider it virtually nonexistent.