Minneapolis, MN (KROC-AM News) - One of the two people recently charged in federal court with voter fraud has entered a guilty plea.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for Minnesota announced in June that Ronnie Williams and Lorraine Combs, who both now live in Nevada, were accused of participating in a conspiracy to generate fictitious names and information used to complete Minnesota voter registration applications.

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According to court documents, the pair took completed voter registration forms to an unnamed foundation that was seeking to register voters in Minnesota. It was alleged that the foundation submitted the false registration applications to county election offices throughout the state.

READ MORE: Minnesota Voter Fraud Scheme Leads to Federal Charges

The criminal complaint alleges the foundation paid Williams for the bogus registrations, and he then split the proceeds with Combs. Federal prosecutors did not specify how many fraudulent voter registration forms were submitted.

Williams and Combs were charged with conspiracy to engage in voter registration fraud. Williams entered a guilty plea to the charge today during a hearing at the federal courthouse in Minneapolis. The conviction carries a sentence of up to five years in prison.

“Today’s guilty plea underscores our commitment to protecting the integrity of the electoral process,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson. “Free and fair elections are the cornerstone of our democracy. Any attempt to undermine that process through fraud will be investigated and prosecuted. This case sends a clear message—election fraud will not be tolerated in Minnesota.”

The Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State previously stated that it, along with local election officials, partnered with the FBI on the investigation for two years. State officials say verification tools built into Minnesota's voter registration system and coordinated with local county election offices to ensure that all fraudulent registration attempts were detected and that no ballots were requested or cast.

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