Recent developments have seen three current and former executives from Smartmatic, the voting technology company, facing charges in the US in connection with an alleged bribery scheme in the Philippines. The Justice Department revealed that among those charged is Smartmatic's president, Roger Piñate.
The charges stem from purported bribes paid by Smartmatic to Andres Bautista, the former top election official in the Philippines, to secure business related to providing voting machines and election services for the 2016 Philippine elections. Bautista, who was already facing related charges in the US, is also named in the new indictment.
Smartmatic responded to the indictments by placing the two executives who are still with the company on leaves of absence, emphasizing their presumption of innocence until proven guilty. The company asserted that no voter fraud allegations have been made against them and highlighted the importance of ensuring the integrity and transparency of elections worldwide.
While the charges do not pertain to the 2020 US election, they have significant implications for Smartmatic's ongoing lawsuits against conservative media outlets. These outlets, including Fox News and Newsmax, are being sued by Smartmatic for promoting false claims that the company's software manipulated the 2020 election results.
The Philippines bribery allegations have been seized upon by Fox News and Newsmax in their defense, arguing that any criminal prosecution of top Smartmatic executives could damage the company's reputation and weaken its defamation cases. Smartmatic's past foreign activities, particularly in Venezuela and the Philippines, have been viewed as potential vulnerabilities in its legal battles in the US.
The trial between Newsmax and Smartmatic is set to take place next month in Delaware state court, barring an out-of-court settlement.
