U student who offered his vote on eBay gets community service

Star Tribune

Last update: July 29, 2008 - 9:11 PM

The University of Minnesota student who offered to sell his vote for president on eBay has been sentenced to 50 hours of community service.

The charge against 19-year-old Max Sanders of Edina will be dismissed if he completes the service within six months, the Hennepin County attorney's office said Tuesday.

Sanders was undecided in the upcoming election. So for a minimum of $10, he said he'd vote for whomever you liked, or, if you so chose, for no one at all.

On May 28, he put his vote up for bid.

Sanders told investigators the posting was a joke, but that didn't stop the filing of a felony charge. He declined to comment on his case. His attorney did not return a phone call seeking comment.

Sanders was charged with bribery, treating and soliciting, a felony under an 1893 Minnesota law that makes it a crime to offer to buy or sell a vote.

PAUL WALSH