Background: Milwaukee City Hall, which houses the Milwaukee Election Commission's office (Google Maps). Inset: Kimberly Zapata (WITI/YouTube).
A former leading Wisconsin election official must face probation or serve time behind bars for having fake absentee ballots sent to a state legislator "to show how easy it is to commit fraud," an appeals court affirmed.
Former Milwaukee Election Commission Deputy Director Kimberly D. Zapata was correctly convicted by a jury of three counts of election fraud and one count of misconduct in public office, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals District I determined in a 15-page decision on Tuesday.
She was subsequently fined $1,000 for each of the election fraud misdemeanors and sentenced to nine months in jail, stayed for 12 months of probation and 120 hours of community service for the misconduct felony, according to Courthouse News Service.
The underlying crime began in the fall of 2022 in the lead-up to the November elections. Zapata's job on the Milwaukee Election Commission was "to ensure that elections ran smoothly and securely, including overseeing absentee voting," the appeals court recounted.
But as the elections approached, "Zapata became concerned about the process for requesting military absentee ballots." Because anyone requesting such a ballot on the state's "MyVote" website did not need to show photo identification or be registered to vote, she "felt that the process was susceptible to fraud."
"Frustrated with public criticism of her office and by conspiracy theories about election fraud, Zapata wanted 'the truth to come out' about 'actual problems' with elections," the appeals court states. So, on the morning of Oct. 25, 2022, Zapata used her work laptop to request military absentee ballots "in the names of three fake individuals."
She looked up "random" home addresses in South Milwaukee, Shorewood, and Menomonee Falls in Wisconsin, with each fake persona receiving one. But her entire process wasn't random, as the justices tell it. She chose these locations "because she felt these areas had 'subpar' municipal clerks who would not catch the fraud."
The plot continued when Zapata asked for each ballot to be sent to a specific state legislator who was "the most vocal election fraud politician" that she knew. She reportedly found this legislator's address through WisVote — which is "only accessible to 'employees who are responsible for administering elections.'"
The appellate court said Zapata's hope was that when the legislator got the ballots, she would "redirect … her focus away from … outrageous conspiracy theories to something that's actually real."
This legislator did indeed receive the ballots, and she subsequently sent out a press release commenting that "someone was trying to point out how easy it is to get military ballots in Wisconsin." News articles were written about the situation, one of which Zapata's supervisor shared with her.
The legislator "had a point," Zapata reportedly said before later admitting that she was the one behind the plot. She explained she was trying "to show how easy it is to commit fraud" regarding the military absentee ballots.
Zapata also spoke with police and admitted to her actions. She was charged.
But the deputy director was resolute that she had done nothing illegal. She claimed that her request for fake absentee ballots was not "for the purpose of obtaining" them and that "there was no material connection between her conduct and the powers and duties of her public office."
A jury heard Zapata's case and found her guilty of all charges in May 2024. She appealed the decision, but the appellate court found her arguments unconvincing.
"Zapata asserts that she did not know or control the person to whom she sent the ballots, so she did not constructively possess or obtain the ballots. We reject Zapata's argument," the decision reads. "The evidence demonstrates that by requesting the ballots, Zapata set off a series of actions she knew the ballots would be subjected to."
"She knew that by requesting the ballots, the ballots would be generated under the fake names that she provided," the appellate court goes on. "She also knew that the ballots, once generated per her request, would be sent to the address that she provided. In other words, Zapata controlled both the names under which the ballots would be generated and the destination to which those ballots would be sent."
The appellate court also dismissed her argument that her conduct was unrelated to her position in public office.