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Fond du Lac's Felony Voting Case
Fond du Lac County’s district attorney is hoping that an election fraud sentence sends a message.
D.A. Eric Toney on Monday said he secured a guilty plea and jail time for a man who illegally voted in the 2022 election.
“I hope this sentence serves as a deterrent to those serving a felony sentence, including probation, by showing there are consequences if they violate the integrity of electoral process,” Toney said in a statement.
The man, Martin Kehl, was on active probation for a felony DUI in November of 2022. By law, he could not vote.
Kehl pleaded no contest for Felony Election Fraud.
"Judge Laura Lavey sentenced Kehl to 7 days jail and $1,500 fine. The state recommended 30 days jail and a $1,000 fine. Judge Lavey stated that ‘The charge is serious and goes against the core of what our country is based on.’,” Toney added. “Wisconsin law provides safeguards to deter those serving a felony sentence from voting in elections and provides a process for accountability if that law is violated.”
There are supposed to be two levels of election security regarding felons in Wisconsin.
The first is a list from the Department of Corrections to the Wisconsin Elections Commission that details every felon in the state who no longer has their voting rights. That list is then supposed to be broken down by county, city, and or municipality, and given to local clerks.
The other safeguard against felons voting is supposed to happen at the polling place itself.
It's not clear who dropped the ball, or how Kehl was allowed to vote in the November 2022 election.
Kehl’s conviction is one of dozens of voter fraud cases in Wisconsin in the past few years.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel put the number at about three dozen cases in 2022 and 2023. The Wisconsin Elections Commission put the number closer to two dozen.
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