Wisconsin absentee ballot fraud: Harry Wait sentenced, 3 years probation

Harry Wait

A Racine County judge sentenced Harry Wait on Tuesday, June 2, to three years of probation following his conviction on election fraud and identity theft charges. There will be no jail time for Wait.

A jury found Wait guilty in March of two misdemeanor counts of election fraud and one felony count of identity theft. 

Harry Wait

Case details

The backstory:

Wait, now 72, was charged in 2022 by the Wisconsin Department of Justice with two misdemeanor counts of election fraud and two felony counts of identity theft. Prosecutors say Wait requested absentee ballots in the names of Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Racine Mayor Cory Mason, actions they argue were intentional violations of the law.

Wait acknowledged requesting the ballots in 2022, but maintained he was attempting to expose vulnerabilities in the state’s absentee voting system.

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According to testimony, Wait used the state’s MyVote website in July 2022 to request ballots for others. He later showed FOX6 the ballots he received.

Wait’s defense attorney argued his client did not try to conceal his actions and instead quickly notified officials. The defense says Wait emailed Vos, Mason, the district attorney and the sheriff about six hours after requesting the ballots, emphasizing his intent to highlight potential flaws rather than commit fraud.

Harry Wait found guilty of 3 counts in absentee ballot fraud case

A Racine County jury will soon decide the face of a man who ordered absentee ballots for Racine's mayor and Wisconsin's Assembly Speaker. The accused is Harry Wait.

The Source: Information in this post was provided by Wisconsin Circuit Court Access, the criminal complaint associated with this case, and previous FOX6 News coverage. 

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