FOND DU LAC, Wis. — A man from Fond du Lac will spend 30 days in jail for committing election fraud during the 2020 general election.
45-year-old Anthony Van Egtern pled no contest and was found guilty of one count of illegal voting on September 24.
According to the criminal complaint obtained by 620 WTMJ, Van Egtern had been on probation after being convicted of felony possession of THC as a second offense in 2018 and was sentenced to “2 years of probation with a withheld sentence and 75 days of conditional jail time”.
Court documents show that during the November 3, 2020 general election, he voted at the Taycheedah Town Hall in Fond du Lac. Poll records show Van Egtern documented as “voter #1252”, and he initially denied voting to investigators in November 2021.
Detectives were able to confirm that Van Egtern signed his plea/waiver form at the time of his sentencing which includes acknowledgement of the statement: “I understand that if I am convicted of any felony, I may not vote in any election until my civil rights are restored.” The terms of his probation were set to end on December 11, 2020.
When asked why he voted after signing the above document, Van Egtern eventually admitted that he voted “because he thought it was important to vote and the country was going to hell”.
Van Egtern was referred for charges by the Wisconsin Election Commission on September of 2021 and made his initial appearance in December. He later missed court and a bench warrant was issued.
Wisconsin law prohibits anyone convicted of a felony to vote until their civil rights are restored, either by commutation of their sentence or the completion of the terms of their imprisonment or probation.
