Forrest Scott Woody

Charged, not convicted. Woody, 68, has been indicted on a single count of voting more than once in the same election. An indictment contains only charges, and he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

Introduction

Forrest Scott Woody, 68, of Hendersonville, North Carolina, has been indicted by a federal grand jury on a charge of illegally voting more than once — accused of casting a ballot in Alabama in the 2024 general election after having already voted in the same election back home in North Carolina . The case was announced by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Alabama on October 8, 2026, after Woody appeared in federal court in Birmingham on the one-count indictment . It is a two-state double-vote case in its simplest form: one election, two ballots, both by the same man .

Background Information

According to the indictment, Woody voted twice in the 2024 general election — voting in Calhoun County, Alabama, after having already voted in the same election in Henderson County, North Carolina . The charge is a single count of voting more than once, brought by a federal grand jury in the Northern District of Alabama, the district where the second ballot was cast . The announcement is deliberately spare on mechanics: it does not describe how the two registrations surfaced, which agencies flagged the duplication, or the margin by which the two ballots were separated in time .

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

The charged conduct is the pair of ballots itself. Woody is alleged to have voted in Calhoun County, Alabama, in the 2024 general election after having already voted in Henderson County, North Carolina, in that same election — the precise act the federal double-voting statute criminalizes, regardless of which ballot counted or whether the outcomes were affected . As with every indictment, the allegation is a charge: the government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he knowingly cast both ballots, and the release itself carries the standard reminder that “An indictment contains only charges” and that a defendant is “presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty” .

Public Reaction and Consequences

The announcement drew the full election-integrity roster. U.S. Attorney Phillip W. Williams Jr. said, “Every election is an important opportunity for eligible voters to make their voices heard, and the integrity of the election depends on voters following the law” . Assistant U.S. Attorney and Election Crimes Coordinator Brett A. Janich called maintaining the sanctity of the election system “one of the highest callings of federal law enforcement” . FBI Birmingham Special Agent in Charge David R. Fitzgibbons said that when individuals attempt to undermine the process, the FBI will work with partners to safeguard “the integrity of every vote” . Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen thanked the U.S. Attorney’s office and his own staff, saying “Election integrity is a top priority of mine” .

Current Status

Woody, 68, has been arraigned in federal court in Birmingham on the one-count indictment and the case is pending . The FBI investigated with the assistance of the Alabama Secretary of State’s Office, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Brett A. Janich is prosecuting . The release does not state his plea, any release conditions, or a trial date .

Impact on Their Career/Life

At 68, Woody faces a federal felony charge that, whatever its outcome, attaches his name to the two-ballot fact the indictment alleges. The case is one of a string of same-season federal prosecutions for double voting — each announced with the same ceremony, each resting on state registration records crossing state lines — and his sits in the Northern District of Alabama’s election-crimes docket under a dedicated coordinator. For a retired-age defendant in Henderson County, the practical exposure is a felony record and the voting-rights consequences that follow a conviction, none of which is resolved until the case is.

Sources

• U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Alabama, “North Carolina Man Arraigned in Federal Court for Voting More Than Once in a Single Election,” October 8, 2026 — source