LANSING – House Speaker Jase Bolger and Rep. Roy Schmidt clearly attempted to perpetrate a fraud on the electorate by attempting to pay a friend of Schmidt’s nephew to run against him after he switched parties, according to a scathing report released Tuesday by the Kent County prosecutor, but none of it was illegal.

The news rocked the Capitol late Tuesday afternoon and within hours calls came from Democrats demanding both men resign for their role in the scheme. In interviews with Gongwer News Service, both men said they have no intentions of resigning.

In the eye-popping 8-page report, Prosecutor William Forsyth said as a Republican he was embarrassed and offended by what transpired and that the Legislature should address this type of situation so it doesn’t happen again. But he will not be filing any charges.

Schmidt’s switch from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party minutes before the May 15 filing deadline, and the entrance of an unknown Democrat to challenge Mr. Schmidt shocked everyone, and immediately raised eyebrows as Democrats contended there had to be a conspiracy behind the moves.

Had no one filed as a Democrat to run, a genuine Democrat could have run a relatively easy campaign as a write-in to win the party’s nomination and then go on to have his or her name on the ballot in the November election against Schmidt. With a straw Democrat on the ballot, a write-in would face the much more daunting task of having to get more votes than that candidate, a difficult battle no matter how flawed the straw candidate who would get votes simply by being on the ballot.

Schmidt at the time denied any involvement in the plan, and Bolger was careful to not to directly answer whether he had any involvement in having Matt Mojzak file to run against Schmidt.

But the report confirms Bolger and Schmidt orchestrated the entire episode and it was one of Bolger’s top aides who filed the paperwork for Mojzak and Schmidt just before the filing deadline.

The report includes text messages between Schmidt (R-Grand Rapids) and Bolger (R-Marshall) that showed Bolger was waiting for Schmidt to find a fake Democrat to run against Schmidt.

“Any luck finding ur Dem in ur district? That’s the last piece we need,” Bolger texted to Schmidt on May 14, the day before the filing deadline.

Later that day, Schmidt texted Bolger: “I am so nervous at this point- just want it to go perfect!”

Bolger texted back in reply, “Me too. I don’t like leaving anything to chance, thus my anxiousness to get this last piece wrapped up. All will then b perfect!”

On the day after the party switch, Bolger avoided directly answering whether he had a hand iN Mojzak filing as a Democrat, which the documents now show he did.

“I don’t know much about him except what I’m reading,” Bolger said to reporters, adding his “conversations had been with Roy Schmidt and about the people of Grand Rapids and about the future of the people of Grand Rapids.”

“My conversations have been focused on Roy Schmidt and the people of Grand Rapids.”

After the news of Forsyth’s report came out, Bolger admitted in a statement for the first time that he “encouraged a Democrat to be recruited to run.” He said from what he knew, Mojzak was a real Democrat.

Later Tuesday night, Bolger took an unusual step for him and spoke directly to a variety of media outlets, including Gongwer.

“I sought to answer all those questions honestly,” Bolger said of the questions reporters asked him May 16 about Schmidt and Mojzak. “I told the truth all along. I never lied.”

Bolger said it was his insistence before and after that everything was done legally.

“It was important to me that we followed the law,” he said.

In his prepared statement, Bolger said he did not know the particulars of Schmidt’s efforts to find someone to run as a Democrat and emphasized the finding that no laws were broken.

“Political fights can be ugly but we should all seek to focus on people, not politics. Nothing about Roy Schmidt switching parties was illegal. Roy Schmidt switched out of motivation to work for the people of Grand Rapids,” he said.

“But some of the actions surrounding the recruitment of another candidate were politically motivated,” he said. “I encouraged a Democrat to be recruited to run, but today even I am still learning about all of the actions that took place surrounding that recruitment. Roy Schmidt told me he wanted to switch parties because he was frustrated dealing with partisan politics instead of finding solutions for Michigan’s people. Political gamesmanship by anyone is a mistake and the focus should be on people instead of politics.”

No charges will be filed against either man.

“Although this scheme by Rep. Schmidt and Speaker Bolger was clearly designed to undermine the election and to perpetrate a ‘fraud’ on the electorate, it was nonetheless legal,” Forsyth said in his report.

Still, the actions committed could have violated the Michigan Campaign Finance Act and therefore Forsyth said he had forwarded his findings to the Department of State. Department spokesperson Gisgie Davila Gendreau said the department had not yet received the report, but would review it once it does.

Forsyth stated that Mojzak, the young man Schmidt helped recruit to run against him, “arguably committed perjury.” However, Forsyth said he would not charge Mojzak given his role.

“While Mojzak ill-advisedly agreed to participate in this misadventure, it is clear that he was duped into doing so and is the least culpable of anyone involved in this fiasco,” Forsyth wrote.

The text messages also indicate that Mojzak was not the first choice for the job.

“Is Matthew the same as u had before?” Bolger texted to Schmidt.

Asked Tuesday who the first choice was, Mr. Schmidt said he could not recall the person’s name, but that it fell through because the individual did not live in the district.

According to the report, on May 13, Mr. Schmidt’s son Ryan sent a text message to Mojzak, because Schmidt had asked his son to help him find someone to run against him in the November general election.

Ryan Schmidt texted Mojzak “do you want to make some money?”

He followed by texting, “Its nothing illegal or anything u have to worry about getting in trouble for… Needs to be done by Tuesday no later than 3 p.m.”

Forsyth’s report states that subsequent text messages show Mojzak was offered $450 to run against Schmidt, and that he would not have to raise money or actively campaign.

Once Mojzak agreed, he went to the Department of State office on the morning of the filing deadline and officially changed his address to one that was in the new 76th House District. He was met there by Roy Schmidt and his son.

After trips to two banks to find a notary, Roy Schmidt took the affidavit and the $100 for the filing fee from Mojzak and brought it with him to Lansing.

He then gave the documents to Phil Browne, Bolger’s deputy chief of staff.

It was Browne who then took both Schmidt’s and Mojzak’s paperwork to Grand Rapids and filed them with the county clerk.

Browne filed Mojzak’s affidavit at 3:42 p.m., then eight minutes later filed Schmidt’s to run as a Republican.

The filing deadline was 4 p.m.

One minute before the filing deadline, the prosecutor’s report indicates Mr. Browne called Mr. Schmidt and the call lasted 39 seconds.

Once Mojzak’s name became public, he was hounded by the news media, trying to learn about the man who filed to run against Schmidt that no one in the local Democratic Party had ever heard of before.

After talking with his parents, the report said Mojzak decided to withdraw his candidacy.

Before doing so, he spoke with Schmidt’s son and nephew, and told them he planned to withdraw.

According to the report, Schmidt told his son to up the financial payout