July 1 (UPI) — The former chairman of the Ohio Republican Party, Matt Borges, has drawn a five-year prison sentence for his role in a $60 million bribery scandal.
Borges is accused of participating in a bribery scheme orchestrated by former Speaker of the State House Larry Householder on behalf of FirstEnergy Corp., to place allies in government and pass a $1 billion nuclear energy bailout.
In 2019, FirstEnergy diverted $38 million to a dark money advocacy group that was lobbying against a referendum-driven repeal of the bailout.
“The government proved beyond a reasonable doubt at trial that Borges conspired with others to violate the racketeering statute in a conspiracy involving nearly $61 million in bribes,” the Justice Department said in a statement issued Friday following the sentencing.
Borges and Householder were convicted of racketeering in March. The court found that Borges passed bribes to obtain information about a referendum to repeal the bailout package.
“Borges’ primary role in the enterprise was to deprive Ohioans of their opportunity to overturn what Borges knew was corrupt legislation,” the Justice Department said.
According to prosecutors, Borges made $366,000 via the bribery scheme.
Defense lawyers asked the court for 1 1/2 years, but U.S. District Judge Timothy Black ruled that despite the fact that Borges had expressed remorse for his actions, he should not get the lower six-month sentence that had been offered to cooperating witnesses or the shorter sentence his lawyers had asked for.
“I’m here today for one reason and one reason only. My behavior, my decisions, my poor judgment,” Borges said at the hearing, according to The Columbus Dispatch. “Nothing makes it feel more stark than knowing I could have walked away from this at the very beginning.”
Prosecutors said Borges “willingly joined the criminal enterprise” knowing its members were involved in a bribery conspiracy, and personally “sought out, solicited, and bribed an individual for insider information.”
Householder this week was sentenced to 20 years for his role in the scandal.
Borges was once a major player in the Republican Party, acting as an advisor to former President George W. Bush and Arizona Sen. John McCain, but eventually he urged GOP voters to support Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election.
Borges previously had a 2004 conviction for giving donors preferential treatment from the state treasurer’s office expunged from his record.