Election documents examined by Menifee 24/7 show that City Council candidate Randy Madrid included false residency information in a form he signed “under penalty of perjury.”
Madrid, who has been a Planning Commissioner for 10 years, is running for the City Council seat in District 4 (northeast Menifee). Unlike rules governing Planning Commissioners, City Council members are required by the City’s municipal code to live in the council district they serve.
In applying for the District 4 seat, Madrid completed the Candidate Intention Statement Form 501, where he listed as his residence an address in the Oasis community. At the bottom of the form, he signed the section which says, “I certify under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of California that the foregoing is true and correct.”
Menifee city clerk Stephanie Roseen is required to collect and submit the information to the Registrar of Voters, but according to city codes, it is not within her authority as the local election official to verify residence. In addition, the Registrar verifies only whether the candidate is a registered voter in the city.
“The address you provide is accepted under penalty of perjury, and the registrar only checks that the information is valid on paper, not that you actually live there,” states the Registrar website.
The bottom line: A candidate who illegally uses an address outside the district he or she is running for is only identified if a violation is reported and the District Attorney chooses to investigate. As reported here earlier this week, that’s what happened in Stockton, where the San Joaquin County DA’s Office announced that Stockton City Council candidate Desiree Lynch was arrested on felony perjury charges for allegedly filing as a candidate using an address where she did not live.
Multiple sources have told Menifee 24/7 that a private party reported Madrid to the Riverside County DA’s Office. A representative of that office this week said she could not confirm or deny whether Madrid is being investigated. The fact remains that Madrid was not truthful on a form in which he stated under perjury that the information was correct.
Prior to viewing the documents showing that proof, Menifee 24/7 asked Madrid about the accusation last week. He said he was in the process of buying a home in District 4 and that the form he signed stated only that he must serve if he wins the election. He added that the sale fell out of escrow and that he would move into the district before the election.
A property search shows that Madrid is not the owner at the address listed on his form 501, nor has the property been in escrow recently. And the form clearly shows that he attested to the truthfulness of that residence under perjury.
When asked again about his situation on Thursday, Madrid had this response:
“I signed that I was in the process of purchasing that property at that address and that I was not the owner yet and I did not live in the district yet. Several witnesses can attest to my statement.”
Asked to provide a copy of such a form, Madrid did not respond.
It is likely that Madrid’s name will be on the ballot when they are printed on Aug. 31. The other candidates who will be listed on the ballot for District 4 are Frank Sandoval and Daniel Stephens. Current District 4 council member Dean Deines is terming out.
If Madrid remains on the ballot and were to somehow win the election despite the controversy, his apparent ineligibility would likely trigger a special election to choose another candidate.
Madrid has not disclosed his actual current address. In a separate form filed with the Fair Political Practices Commission regarding planned campaign donations, he listed as his mailing address a P.O. Box in Menifee. The actual residence he listed is redacted on the FPPC form because the FPPC allows candidates to keep that information confidential.
Madrid was originally appointed to the Planning Commission by Mayor Scott Mann in 2016. He is president of RM Project Development, which is described online as a real estate development company with an address listed at a private residence in District 2 of Menifee. At the time, he was serving on the Board of Directors for the Building Industry Association of Riverside. He also previously held leadership positions on the Board of Directors for the Home Builders Council of Orange County.
