Former Bexar County Democratic Party Chair Juan Manuel Medina has been indicted on two vote harvesting charges in a broader voter fraud investigation led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Prosecutors allege Medina compensated two individuals, Rachel Leal and ex-Dilley council member Inelda Rodriguez, for vote-harvesting efforts supporting Democrat Cecilia Castellano’s failed 2024 Texas House campaign.

Castellano, Leal, and Rodriguez were also indicted, along with five others, including former mayors and local officials. Castellano’s attorney claims she is innocent and called the indictments “chilling.”

The probe, focused on Frio County, previously resulted in a raid on Medina’s home and seizure of Castellano’s phone. Separately, Paxton’s office is investigating 33 “potential noncitizens” flagged by the DHS SAVE database for allegedly voting in 2024.

Similar cases have emerged in other states. In Arizona, two women were indicted in 2022 for ballot abuse during the 2020 election in Yuma County.

The mounting cases reflect intensifying scrutiny of election integrity by Republican attorneys general, with Paxton’s office at the forefront of aggressive enforcement in Texas.