A day after former State Senator Frank Artiles was found guilty of campaign finance and voter registration violations, the candidate who was the target of the scheme is speaking about it all.

A Miami-Dade jury found former Florida Sen. Frank Artiles, R-Miami-Dade, guilty of three of four counts against him in his criminal case Monday evening.

Miami-Dade prosecutors rested their case against former State Sen. Frank Artiles Friday.

Frank Artiles served three terms in the Florida House of Representatives and one term in the Florida Senate before he ended up in the middle of a “ghost” candidate scandal.

The star witness in the “ghost candidate” trial of former Florida Sen. Frank Artiles, R-Miami-Dade, took the stand again Tuesday.

The defense is expected to cross-examine Alex Rodriguez Monday in the “ghost candidate” trial of former Florida Sen. Frank Artiles.

While on the witness stand, during the Miami-Dade County trial against former Florida Sen. Frank Artiles, Alex Rodríguez admitted to being a sham candidate for the Florida Legislature in exchange for $50,000.

Alex Rodriguez, the star witness in the “ghost candidate” trial of former Florida Sen. Frank Artiles in Miami-Dade County is expected to take the stand on Friday.

Witness testimony continued on Thursday in the 2020 “ghost candidate” trial of former Florida Sen. Frank Artiles in Miami-Dade County.

Proceedings got back underway Wednesday in the “ghost candidate” trial of former State Sen. Frank Artiles, R-Miami-Dade.

The so-called “ghost candidate” trial got underway Tuesday. At the center of it is former State Sen. Frank Artiles, R-Miami-Dade, who is accused of masterminding a scheme to sway a 2020 race.

A former no-party-affiliated state Senate candidate and the chairman of the Republican Party of Seminole County are among the three people arrested in connection to the shill candidate scheme in Central Florida.

Dark money sent to a Central Florida printer was divided up amongst five beneficiaries, according to new court documents released by the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office in its ongoing investigation into the shill candidate scheme.

Admitted shill candidate Alex Rodriguez entered a plea deal Tuesday in exchange for his testimony in the case against former Florida Sen. Frank Artiles, who is accused of masterminding the rigging of senate elections.

Alex Rodriguez, the shill candidate who was allegedly paid by former state Sen. Frank Artiles to enter as a non-party affiliated candidate in the race for District 37 will be accepting a plea deal.

New records released by the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office in the case against disgraced former senator Frank Artiles and one shill candidate give an intricate look at how the scheme was allegedly funded and connect it to a prominent Republican consulting firm.

Former state Sen. Frank Artiles and Alex Rodriguez, the sham candidate Artiles is accused of masterminding, entered written not-guilty pleas Friday in the alleged plot to swing the District 37 state senate race in November.

El congresista de Florida Matt Gaetz, que ya forma parte de una investigación federal sobre acusaciones de tráfico sexual, ahora está vinculado a un candidato cómplice en una elección del Senado de Florida, según el New York Times.

Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz has been tied to a shill candidate in a Florida Senate election, according to the New York Times.

Former Senator Frank Artiles and Alexis Rodriguez, his alleged accomplice in a plot to manipulate Miami-Dade County’s Senate District 37 race, were facing new criminal charges on Thursday in Miami-Dade.

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – The investigation into planting shill candidates in state legislative races may be widening. On Thursday, 11 Democratic members of Congress from Florida asked U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland to launch a federal investigation into the shill candidates and their dark money. If the request is granted, the investigation into the sham candidates could be turbo-charged and could uncover the source of the $500,000 spent on three sham candidates last fall. AdUnited States Representative Frederica Wilson was one of the Florida House members who sent the letter to the attorney general. In at least three Florida senate races, sham candidates were planted by political operatives and funded by dark money groups in order to sway the electoral outcome.”Wilson’s solution?

The Democratic groups, however, want a new election, saying the one in November was tainted. AdBy all accounts, everyone knew about this ahead of the election, raising the question of why opponents didn’t raise the issue then. The plant candidate Alex Rodriguez got more than 6,000 votes despite not actually campaigning. The actual election mechanics in this year’s District 37 race were lawful and smooth. Planting a shill candidate is not illegal, but the funding in this case was, prosecutors allege.

PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. – Former state Senator Frank Artiles and the shill candidate he is accused of funding were both arrested last week in a bombshell election scandal. His arrest was the culmination of a four-month investigation at the State Attorney’s office, launched the day after Local 10 found two shill candidates that might have swayed South Florida state Senate elections. He ended up losing his seat by 32 votes to now-state Senator Ileana Garcia. AdState Senator Gary Farmer of Broward County is one of those, as the Democratic minority leader in the state Senate. He joined This Week in South Florida hosts Glenna Milberg and Michael Putney, and their conversation can be seen at the top of this page.

PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. – Florida Democratic leaders are calling for Republican State Senator Ileana Garcia to step down or to voluntarily resign and for a new election to be held. This comes in the wake of former state senator Frank Artiles being charged with election fraud Thursday, accused of masterminding and funding a sham candidate to manipulate voters last November. Faced with proof of fraud that clearly impacted the outcome of an election decided by 32 votes. He lost the election by 32 votes to Republican Ileana Garcia. It is unlikely that Garcia would voluntarily resign her seat and there is no provision in state law that says she must step down.

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Former state lawmaker Frank Artiles and Alex Rodriguez, a candidate allegedly paid to fool voters in the 2020 election, were booked into jail in Miami-Dade County on Thursday. Investigators say Artiles paid Rodriguez $44,708.03 “for changing his party affiliation, qualifying as an independent candidate for Senate Seat 37, and attempting to [siphon] votes from the incumbent candidate.”That Democrat incumbent shared the last name Rodriguez, and Jose Javier Rodriguez ultimately lost the District 37 vote to Republican challenger Ileana Garcia by just 32 votes. Details of the scheme are outlined by investigators in a warrant obtained by Local 10 News that can be read below:

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Frank Artiles walked out of Miami-Dade County jail late Thursday night after posting a $5,000 bond. Shill candidate Alex Rodriguez was also booked on Thursday morning. (Courtesy of Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office)Rodriguez was released on bond Thursday afternoon and declined comment outside the jail. The plant candidate Alex Rodriguez, a deep-in-debt machinery rep who actually lived two counties away from the district, got over 6,000 votes despite not actually campaigning, nor having actual political aspirations. Alex Rodriguez, 55, told investigators that Artiles, 47, contacted him on May 15, 2020, through Facebook Messenger.

Glenna Milberg joined Local 10 News in September 1999 to report on South Florida's top stories and community issues. She also serves as co-host on Local 10's public affairs broadcast, "This Week in South Florida."

Investigators are looking for evidence of Artiles’ possible communication with Alex Rodriguez, a shill candidate in the District 37 Florida Senate race, and whether there is proof Artiles illegally paid for and paid off the sham candidate. Ad🚨Breaking: search warrant raid right now at home of resigned #Florida Sen. Frank Artiles re shill candidate he planted, Alex Rodriguez. Prosecutors have been working the case for months, following the money and communications between Artiles and Alex Rodriguez. Shill candidate Alex Rodriguez got over 6,000 votes. There is no evidence that suggests Garcia was involved or had any knowledge of the shill being planted in the race.

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Danielle Cohen Higgins was appointed and sworn in as Miami-Dade County’s new commissioner for District 8 on Monday, filling the seat vacated by new mayor Daniella Levine Cava. Cohen Higgins, a civil law attorney, was selected by a 10-1 vote in a special meeting. The process took only about 10 minutes as commissioners decided to make the appointment rather than hold a special election for district residents. Cohen Higgins was considered a frontrunner from the get-go among a list of seven contenders. Relatively drama-freeMiami Dade commission votes 10-1 to appoint Danielle Cohen Higgins to fill D8 seat, left open as predecessor Daniella Levine Cava became county Mayor.

The investigation into who masterminded and funded the shill candidates now includes Frank Artiles, a former state Senator who resigned in disgrace and who is now asking to be appointed to the Miami-Dade Commission. Two people in a position to stop political manipulation are current state lawmakers, and two of them joined This Week in South Florida. Annette Taddeo is a Democratic state Senator representing Kendall and Southwest Miami-Dade. Chip LaMarca is a Republican representing Broward County’s coastal communities, from Hollywood to the north county line. They joined TWISF hosts Michael Putney and Glenna Milberg, and their discussion can be seen at the top of this page.

MIAMI – Former Sen. Frank Artiles refused to talk on Thursday night about his role in planting a shill candidate in Miami-Dade’s Senate race for District 37. Given the opportunity, he did not deny Alex Rodriguez likely ran in the Senate race to disrupt Democratic votes for incumbent, Jose Javier Rodriguez. Meanwhile, Alex Rodriguez applied to fill the vacant District 8 seat of Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, according to the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners. Alex Rodriguez, who had 6,382 voters on his side Nov. 3, is at the center of an ongoing shill candidate investigation by the State Attorney’s Office. She had denied any involvement in the shill candidate scheme.