By Ovetta Wiggins and Avis Thomas-Lester
Washington Post Staff Writers
Thursday, November 9, 2006; A46

The misleading fliers distributed on Election Day by poor, out-of-state workers suggesting that top Republican candidates had the backing of key black Democrats do not appear to be illegal but could have a lasting impact on the Republican Party's efforts to attract African American voters, political experts said yesterday.

The fliers included a "Democratic Sample Ballot" suggesting that voters back Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. and Senate candidate Michael S. Steele, both Republicans. Entitled "Ehrlich-Steele Democrats," it pictured three influential Democrats -- Wayne K. Curry, Prince George's County Executive Jack B. Johnson and Kweisi Mfume -- and said at the bottom, "These are OUR choices." Curry had endorsed Steele but not Ehrlich, and neither Johnson nor Mfume had endorsed either candidate.

"They have said that Democrats have taken black votes for granted, but that flier tried to take black people for fools," said Michael Fauntroy, an assistant professor of public policy at George Mason University.

State law does not generally prohibit making misleading claims on campaign literature, several experts said yesterday, but election law might have been violated if the workers who distributed the fliers were hired by a political committee that is not registered to engage in campaign finance activity.

A spokeswoman for the campaign, Shareese DeLeaver, said Tuesday that the group "Democrats for Ehrlich" had arranged for the distribution of the fliers. But according to the State Board of Elections, the only registered organization that has used a similar name is "Democrats for (Robert) Ehrlich," an Ehrlich campaign committee that was disbanded nearly four years ago.

DeLeaver did not return calls seeking comment yesterday on whether the groups are, in fact, one and the same.

Ken Mehlman, chairman of the Republican National Committee, had meetings in Prince George's, the most affluent black county in the country, to send a message that the party is trying to be more inclusive, Fauntroy said. The tactics used on behalf of Ehrlich and Steele "crosses an ethical line in campaigning and politics," Fauntroy said.

Terry Lierman, chairman of the Maryland Democratic Party, said he has spoken with lawyers and plans to talk with lawmakers about the fliers.

"I think this is so egregious as to what they did that their deeds cannot be forgotten in the brush of victory," Lierman said. "We have to find out who did it, how it was paid for."

Any organization that raises and spends money on activities in support of a specific candidate -- such as hiring workers to distribute fliers backing a candidate -- is required to register with the state, said Jared DeMarinis, director of the board's candidacy and campaign finance division.

The state prosecutors office filed criminal charges last week against the Carroll County Republican Club and two of its officers, alleging that they engaged in campaign finance activity while not properly registered. The offense is punishable by up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $25,000, the office said in a news release.

Antoinette Aziz arranged for the Philadelphia men to come to Maryland. Her husband, Malik, is founder of the Ex-Offenders Association of Pennsylvania, an organization that helps people reenter society after they are released from prison. In a telephone interview, Malik Aziz said he and his wife were contacted by actor Charles S. Dutton, a close family friend and Steele supporter. He told them that Republicans were looking for people to do "poll work." They were contacted shortly after by someone they believe to be from either the Steele or Ehrlich campaigns.

Dutton recently did a radio campaign ad in support of Steele. His publicist said he was on location in Alabama and could not be reached for comment.

Antoinette Aziz said someone from the Maryland campaign spoke with the workers Monday night at a recreation center in North Philadelphia. "It was just a briefing so they could understand where they were going and the time frame," Antoinette Aziz said.

She said she made the trip to Maryland with the group and spent the day at Ehrlich's campaign office in Lanham. She was there when Ehrlich and his wife, Kendel, made a stop to talk to workers there Tuesday morning. Ehrlich and his spokeswoman said Tuesday that they didn't know how the men were chosen or how they got to Prince George's.

The Azizes, who are registered Democrats, said they did not know that the workers would be asked to distribute the fliers. They were told that each person would receive three meals and $100 and that they would be picked up on buses and returned to North Philadelphia the same day. The couple said they saw the trip to Maryland as an opportunity for men and women who may be unfamiliar with the political process to see it in action.

"Our concern was that this was a chance for people to make honest money so they don't have to hurt nobody or hit nobody in the head to get it," Malik Aziz said.

Staff writer Eric Rich contributed to this report.