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FILE – A Smartmatic representative demonstrates his company's system which has scanners and touch screens with printout options, at a meeting of the Secure, Accessible & Fair Elections Commission, Aug. 30, 2018, in Grovetown, Ga.
Bob Andres/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP, File
US prosecutors say Smartmatic executives bribed officials for $1M contract in the Philippines
Published 2:47 PDT, Thu October 16, 2025
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MIAMI (AP) — Federal prosecutors have charged voting technology firm Smartmatic with money laundering and other crimes arising from more than $1 million in bribes that several executives allegedly paid to election officials in the Philippines.
The payments, between 2015 and 2018, were made to obtain a contract with the Philippines government to help run that country’s 2016 presidential election and secure the timely payment for its work, according to a superseding indictment filed Thursday in Miami federal court.
Three former executives of Smartmatic, including co-founder Roger Pinate, were previously charged in 2024 but at the time Smartmatic was not named as a defendant.
Smartmatic CEO Antonio Mugica did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The criminal case is unfolding as Smartmatic is pursuing a $2.7 billion lawsuit accusing Fox News of defamation for airing false claims that the company helped rig the 2020 U.S. presidential election.
– Joshua Goodman, The Associated Press
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