Watertown police are investigating a Democrat running for Wisconsin’s Assembly District 37 after more than a dozen folks listed on her nomination papers alleged she forged their names and signatures.

“Proud Democrat” Charisse Daniels – featured last year in a CNN report about women running for office in the wake of Donald Trump’s election win – is among a slate of progressive female candidates in Wisconsin spawned by Emerge America, a Hillary Clinton-endorsed group that recruits and trains women candidates in dozens of states.

Wisconsin’s Republican Party filed complaints with the state election commission and Watertown Police after Rep. John Jagler, the Republican incumbent, noticed the name of one of his longtime supporters on Daniels’ nomination petition and decided to investigate.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports:

Reached Monday, Jagler said he turned up the problem on Daniels’ nomination papers when he saw the signature of David Block, a longtime supporter of his and donor. Jagler said he called Block, who responded, “I’ve never heard of her.”

The third-term lawmaker said he then noticed that many of the signatures looked the same, so he began contacting everyone who signed the nomination papers submitted by Daniels.

Some didn’t even know what nomination papers were; many did not know the Democratic candidate. A number were very angry that their signatures appeared on the campaign document.

“As a woman, I would’ve definitely supported her. Now, I’m kind of at a loss about what to do,” Carolyn Demetropoulos, one of the alleged victims of the scam, told Fox 6. “I feel kind of betrayed and angry, but I’m glad that this sort of thing was brought to light because this is not right.”

So far, Jagler has identified 27 people listed in Daniels’ paperwork who said they did not sign her nomination petition, as well as issues with three other signatures, including one that listed a vacant lot as their address.

Daniels is listed as the person who collected the questionable signatures. The paperwork, dated May 21, bears her signature next to the disclaimer “I am aware that falsifying this certification is punishable” under Wisconsin law.

Patrice Walter, a Watertown occupational therapist listed on Daniels’ nomination, told the Journal Sentinel she’d never heard of the candidate until she learned about the fake signatures.

“If she’s forging my name and a bunch of others, something should be done,” Walter said. 

CNN featured Daniels, a 29-year-old mother of four, in a story last year about women who received training through Emerge America, a group Hillary Clinton proudly endorsed in 2017.

Daniels described Donald Trump’s 2016 election victory as the “absolute kick in the gut” that motivated her to attend political rallies and ultimately run for public office.

“This isn’t what I thought the world would look like,” she told CNN. “It changed everything.”

State officials confirmed Daniels submitted 201 valid signatures before the recent controversy, just one more than 200 signatures required for Assembly candidates to qualify for the ballot.

Daniels has ignored requests for comment from the media, and has instead relied on her attorney to do the talking.

“We are gathering the relevant details now and will present them to the Elections (Commission) and local officials,” attorney Michael Maistelman told the Journal Sentinel. “We expect that this issue will be resolved and my client is looking forward to facing the voters on the ballot this fall.”

Daniels has three days to respond to the Elections Commission complaint, filed Monday. The commission is expected to make a determination on her eligibility for the ballot at its June 11 meeting.

Watertown Police, meanwhile, are looking into whether she committed a crime.

“The allegations were reported to the police department on June 5, 2018. The case had been assigned to investigators who will work closely with the District Attorney’s office,” Watertown Chief of Police Timothy Roets wrote in a release. “No further public comments will be made regarding the investigation until its conclusion.”

Wisconsin GOP spokesman Alec Zimmerman said “Charisse Daniels should be ashamed of her illegal and unethical actions – defrauding the very voters that she’s trying to represent.”

Jagler also called into question Emerge America’s 70-hour training sessions.

“No matter what they taught her in those 70 hours or whatever it was, I would think the first thing they would tell you is to make sure you get on the ballot or the rest is moot,” he said.