Wow, potential criminal charges for trying to show how easy it is to steal elections.
A Milwaukee election official could face criminal charges accusing her of fraudulently requesting absentee ballots reserved for members of the military and sending them to a Republican lawmaker to prove how easy it is to defraud the Wisconsin election system.
Milwaukee Election Commission deputy director Kimberly Zapata, 44, of South Milwaukee, was fired by Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson this week after Johnson discovered she had requested the ballots.
Johnson said Zapata said she committed the crime to show voter fraud was possible.
“This has every appearance of being an egregious and blatant violation of trust,” Johnson said. “Election integrity is absolutely integral. It’s absolutely essential.” Milwaukee County prosecutors are considering charging Zapata with malfeasance in office, a felony, and illegally requesting a ballot, a misdemeanor.
District Attorney John Chisholm said in a statement his office is reviewing the election fraud allegations and that prosecutors “expect charges to be filed in the coming days.”
Michael Maistelman, who is representing Zapata, declined to answer questions. “We will litigate this in the courtroom, not the media,” Maistelman said.
Under state law, military voters are not required to register to vote and do not have to provide photo ID or any other identification. “It’s my belief that she was pointing out that you can go onto the public system, make up a person and request a ballot,” Woodall-Vogg said, adding that city officials’ understanding is that she sent it to Brandtjen to alert her to the system’s vulnerability.