Donald Segretti, a Republican legislative aide, who Gordon Strachan had helped to hire admitted that he made secret payments last year to left-wing candidates in California to draw votes away from the Democrat in a race which the Republican would not have otherwise won.
Also, He converted GOP checks into postal money orders to conceal the sources.
Also, in the lead-up to the special election for of the 48th District of the California Assembly November 16, 1971, Donald Segretti volunteered on the California State Legislative campaign of Democrat Richard Alatorre in his race against Republican Bill Brophy.
Another Boston-based operation stole Senator Ted Kennedy’s letterhead and gave it to Segretti who wrote a disavowal of any previous endorsements from Kennedy.
Also, he walked some turf handing out attack literature.
Segretti also funneled money to a liberal 3rd party, Raul Ruiz, the “La Rasa Unida” party candidate as well as the anti-Vietnam war “Peace and Freedom” party.
The day before the election, shots were fired into Brophy’s house and, Alatorre told a reporter, the resulting publicity gave Brophy the boost he needed to win the seat.
Phone records disclosed during the Watergate trial reveal that E. Howard Hunt was on the phone with Segretti a lot in these months.
VOTE TOTALS:
Alatorre (D)- 14,759
Brophy (R)- 16,346
Ruiz (La Rasa Unida)- 2,778
John W. Blaine- (Peace and Freedom)- 1,108