Previous Milwaukee Election Commission assistant director Kimberly Zapata was found guilty of all costs related to a ballot-fraud scheme involving martial absentee ballots. Following proceedings that started earlier in the day, a Milwaukee County judge handed down the judgment on Wednesday.
In response to complaints that Zapata allegedly requested defense absentee ballots without authorization and directed them to the house of State Representative Janel Brandtjen (R-Menomonee Falls )?
In November 2022, Rep. Janel Brandtjen, then chair of the Assembly on Campaigns and Elections, issued an alert on election fraud after receiving three legitimate military ballots at her home, addressed to “Holly, ” a non-existent resident. Brandtjen believed that this affair hints at a voter-stealing scheme in Wisconsin.
In an effort to inform her of how simple it is to use military votes, Brandtjen alerted law enforcement on Monday.
— Dan O’Donnell ( @DanODonnellShow ) November 3, 2022
Zapata was later found guilty of election scams. Claire Woodall-Vogg, the Commission ’s Director, suggested Zapata aimed to show the risk in the process for military vote, which can be issued and mailed without requiring a photo ID or voter registration identification.
WATCH:
Democrats defended Kimberly Zapata, saying her deeds were intended to demonstrate how simple it is to request fraudulent vote.
Claire Woodall-Vogg, chairman of the Milwaukee Elections Commission, says she thinks Zapata was trying to make it clear that no image identification or even voter registration can be obtained for military votes online. co/D6Nnq5tHWd site.
— Dan O’Donnell ( @DanODonnellShow ) November 3, 2022
Zapata was described by security attorney Dan Adams as a whistleblower who wanted to show how flawed the system was. Zapata did not speak out in her own protection. “She was a leak. According to Fox6, she was displaying the facts, an incomplete but accurate display of what was happening, Adams said.
During the test, the prosecutors argued that Zapata’s behavior, under the pretext of exposing defects in the election process, really compounded the problem. Assistant District Attorney Matthew Westphal criticized Zapata’s method, stating, “She brought to light the scenario by lying on these programs. by distributing these fabricated votes. That’s no blowing the whistle on the issue, it ’s aggravating the problem. ”
Around five to seven of the 300 defense absentee ballots received by the Milwaukee Election Commission in 2022 were discovered to be false, which is when the investigation into Zapata’s activities began.
Claire Woodall, the commission’s executive chairman, testified about the strict procedures followed to avoid improper registration of defense citizens. She vowed to follow those rules and make sure no one was unknowingly registered as a military voting, according to Woodall.
Mayor of Milwaukee, Cavalier Johnson, reacted to the conviction by highlighting the importance of transparency and election officials ‘ dignity. “ I frequently speak about transparency for crime. Kimberly Zapata was found guilty today by a judge for her crimes relating to the use of bogus absentee ballots, and the jury also found fault for a serious mistake. ”
Mayor Johnson stated, “At the moment of Zapata’s expulsion from the Milwaukee’s Election Commission, I said it does not matter that this might have been an effort to expose a risk that state laws created. The fact that this did not include the City of Milwaukee votes matters. It does n’t matter if there was no tampering with election results or illegal voting attempted. Ultimately, the deeds were a violation of trust.
He concluded, “At a moment when election authorities are subjected to false accusations and abuse, it is essential they act with the highest dignity. That is a common Milwaukee will sustain. ”
