The Sconi

Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson is taking a hardline stance against former City deputy elections director Kimberly Zapata after she was charged with illegally sending military ballots to the home of a state lawmaker as part of a plan to expose glitches in the state’s election system.

“I will not accept, I will not tolerate, and I certainly will not defend any misrepresentation by a city official involved in elections,” Johnson posted on Twitter after announcing that Zapata had been relieved of her duties. “It does not matter that this might have been an effort to expose a vulnerability that state law created..”

State Rep. Janel Brandtjen was the recipient of the ballots after they were sent to her suburban home in Milwaukee under the fictitious names of Holly Adams, Holly Brandtjen and Holly Jones, all of whom the lawmaker insists a subsequent investigation has found probably do not exist.

Brandtjen later turned the ballots over to the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department.

Zapata could ultimately face criminal charges over her part in the scheme, the Washington Post said recently. Officials added that it remains to be seen if this event will prompt them to change expectations for military ballots.

The incident marks the second major election-based crime trial in the state this year after Henry Wait was earlier charged with illegally ordering absentee ballots in Racine.

With Wisconsin being one of the few states in the country that allows military personnel to receive an absentee ballot without registering to vote, Zapata is reported to have ordered the ballots in question through a state website without verification of residency. Ultimately, she did not utilize any resources or information reserved for election officials only and not available to the public.