Jason T. Schofield, the Republican Rensselaer County Board of Elections commissioner, was arrested outside his residence Tuesday morning by the FBI and charged with fraudulently obtaining and filing absentee ballots last year using the personal information of at least eight voters without their permission, according to an indictment unsealed in U.S. District Court. The indictment accuses Schofield of using an online state Board of Elections portal to request absentee ballots on behalf of eight voters who had no interest in voting, did not request absentee ballots and didn’t know that Schofield was using their personal information to obtain the ballots. The indictment alleges the official “falsely certified” that he was the person requesting the ballot when he entered the voters’ names and dates of birth in the portal. The ballots that were delivered to the Rensselaer County Board of Elections were subsequently filled out and submitted in last year’s primary election, the general election, and sometimes both. Schofield pleaded not guilty and was released on his own recognizance. From the Times-Union.