HAZARD – The 2010 general election in Perry County was not rigged, a now concluded investigation conducted by the Kentucky Office of the Attorney General has found.

The Perry County Grand Jury first looked into the election after a request made by Perry County Clerk Haven King, whose office oversees local elections. King’s request was spurred on by allegations made by several unsuccessful candidates that the election was rigged for certain candidates

In a statement released to the Herald on Tuesday, King said that due to the “seriousness of these allegation,” he requested the grand jury to launch an investigation into the election to determine if there were any inconsistencies in the contest.

“As County Clerk and Chairman of the Perry County Election Commission, those are allegations that I take very seriously,” King said. “As long as I hold this position, I will do my best to protect the integrity of the election process and insure that elections in Perry County are fair and honest.”

King said he was called in twice to speak with the grand jury about the election as part of the investigation, which was eventually turned over to the Kentucky Attorney General’s office last month when the voting machines used in the 2010 election were impounded.

According to a letter from the Attorney’s General’s office dated May 24 and addressed to Commonwealth’s Attorney Teresa Reed from Robert B. Foster, commissioner of the Department of Criminal Investigation within the AG’s office, the allegations were reviewed and a subsequent investigation “found no basis for any criminal charges regarding these allegations.”

King said he was not surprised at the result of the investigation because he knew there had been no tampering with the machines and the election could not have been rigged.

“I’m the one that asked for the investigation,” he said.

King said though he was happy that the grand jury and the attorney general’s office cleared the election, he still has not been given any official word from whom the allegations were first made. King said he believes the candidates were told the machines were rigged by someone else.

“The only thing that I wanted, which I haven’t gotten, is who made those accusations,” he added.

King said he hoped the grand jury investigation would reveal that source, but ultimately he said he is satisfied that the voters will know the election was on the level.

“I would like to thank the Perry County Grand Jury and the Office of the Attorney General for looking into this matter,” he said. “I believe that their actions give the people of Perry County the assurance that the 2010 general election was conducted appropriately and that the results of the election do, in fact, represent the will of the people.”