Smartmatic, a global leader in election technology, finds itself at the center of a sprawling legal and political firestorm, with federal prosecutors in Miami alleging that proceeds from a nearly $300 million Los Angeles County voting machine contract were funneled into a slush fund used to bribe foreign officials. This revelation, surfacing in court filings as recently as August 2025, casts a long shadow over the company’s reputation and raises uncomfortable questions about the intersection of public procurement, global business, and political intrigue.
The core of the controversy revolves around Roger Pinate, Smartmatic’s co-founder, who—along with two Venezuelan associates—was charged in 2024 with bribing officials in the Philippines. Prosecutors allege that these bribes secured Smartmatic a lucrative contract to oversee the 2016 Philippine presidential elections, with at least $1 million reportedly paid to Juan Andres Donato Bautista, the former Chairman of the Philippines’ Commission on Elections. According to the LA Times and Tampa Free Press, the funds for these bribes were allegedly sourced by over-invoicing Los Angeles County for voting machines, then laundering the surplus through a web of overseas shell companies and fraudulent contracts. Pinate has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Despite the gravity of the allegations, neither Smartmatic as a company nor any of its current executives have been charged with crimes. U.S. prosecutors have made it clear that Smartmatic is not accused of tampering with election outcomes, and Los Angeles County officials have not been implicated in any wrongdoing. Dean Logan, the county’s registrar-recorder and top election official, stated unequivocally to the LA Times on August 21, 2025, "The county has no knowledge or visibility into how Smartmatic USA used proceeds from that contract." He emphasized that the $282 million deal was competitively bid, carefully evaluated, and awarded according to strict public procurement rules.
Still, the case has brought intense scrutiny to the relationship between Los Angeles County and Smartmatic. Fox News, currently defending itself in a $2.7 billion defamation lawsuit brought by Smartmatic over its coverage of the 2020 U.S. presidential election, has gone to court to obtain public records and depose Logan about his interactions with the company. Among the details unearthed: a Smartmatic executive treated Logan to dinner at the exclusive Magic Castle club in Hollywood, and the company funded Logan’s 2019 business-class trip to Taiwan to oversee equipment manufacturing. Fox’s lawyers, as cited by the Associated Press, characterized the Taiwan trip as "a boondoggle" rather than a legitimate business inspection. Logan, however, insisted in a 2023 deposition that the dinner was merely a "social occasion" and that the Taiwan trip was covered by the contract, with all activities conducted as required for product review. His spouse accompanied him at their own expense, and another county official joined for on-site inspections.
Los Angeles County spokesperson Mike Sanchez added that all Smartmatic’s work was evaluated for compliance with contract terms, and that as soon as Pinate and his co-defendants were indicted, they were barred from conducting any further business with the county. "Unfortunately, this is an attempt to use the County as a pawn in two serious legal actions to which the County is not a party," Sanchez told AP. He further noted that the county had no knowledge of how contract proceeds were used, nor did it find evidence of overbilling as alleged by prosecutors.
Smartmatic itself has responded forcefully to the allegations. In a statement to the Associated Press, the company said, "Let us be clear: Smartmatic wins business because we’re the best at what we do. We operate ethically and abide by all laws always, both in Los Angeles County and every jurisdiction where we operate." Smartmatic spokesperson Samira Saba went further, accusing the Justice Department of making "misrepresentations that were untethered from reality." The company maintains that it has not been charged with any crime, nor has it ever been accused of voter fraud. In response to the indictment, Smartmatic placed the employees involved on leave, stating, "Regardless of the veracity of the allegations and while our accused employees remain innocent until proven guilty, we have placed both employees on leave of absence, effective immediately."
Fox News, for its part, has seized upon the federal investigation in its effort to defend against Smartmatic’s defamation suit. The network has argued in court that Smartmatic’s business woes stem from its own legal problems, not Fox’s reporting. In a court filing, Fox’s lawyers asserted, "Facing imminent financial collapse and indictment, Smartmatic saw a litigation lottery ticket in Fox News’s coverage of the 2020 election." Smartmatic has shot back, labeling Fox’s characterization as "lies" and "another attempt to divert attention from its long-standing campaign of falsehoods and defamation."
Adding yet another layer to the saga, U.S. prosecutors have accused Pinate of orchestrating a separate bribe in Venezuela, allegedly providing a luxury home with a pool in Caracas to the country’s longtime election chief. This, prosecutors claim, was an attempt to repair relations after Smartmatic’s dramatic exit from Venezuela in 2017, when the company publicly accused President Nicolas Maduro’s government of manipulating election results. Smartmatic has denied these allegations, insisting it ceased all operations in Venezuela after blowing the whistle and has never sought business there since. "There are no slush funds, no gifted house," the company said, accusing Fox of "victim-blaming" and using "frivolous" court filings "to smear us further, twisting unproven Justice Department allegations."
The stakes in this multifaceted dispute are high. The Los Angeles County contract is believed to be the largest election technology deal in U.S. history, and Smartmatic’s defamation suit against Fox News could reshape the legal landscape for media coverage of elections. Meanwhile, the federal investigation continues to unfold, with prosecutors planning to introduce evidence of similar alleged schemes in Los Angeles and Venezuela to demonstrate what they describe as a pattern of corruption.
As the legal battles rage on, Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger has pledged to "closely monitor developments in this case to ensure that taxpayer dollars are protected." The controversy has reignited debate over the transparency and oversight of election technology contracts, both in the U.S. and globally. For Smartmatic, the coming months will be crucial—not just for its own future, but for public trust in the systems that underpin democracy itself.
