A jury convicted former national Republican Party official James Tobin yesterday on two counts of telephone harassment for his role in a plot to jam Democratic phone banks on Election Day 2002 in New Hampshire. But the federal jury acquitted Tobin on the most serious count, conspiracy to violate voters'rights.

Tobin, 45, of Bangor, Maine, was the New England political director for the Republican National Committee and the Northeast field representative for the National Republican Senatorial Committee during the 2002 election. He later served as New England chairman for the Bush-Cheney campaign but resigned shortly before the 2004 election, after allegations about his involvement in the phone scheme became public.

Tobin, who will be sentenced in March, faces up to seven years in prison and a $500,000 for the two counts on which he was convicted -conspiring to commit telephone harassment through repeated phone calls, and aiding and abetting telephone harassment committed by others. A guilty verdict on the voters' rights count could have added 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

The 2002 election in New Hampshire included a close race for U.S. Senate between Jeanne Shaheen and John Sununu. On Election Day, a telemarketing firm hired by Republicans barraged six phone lines - belonging to four state Democratic field offices, the Manchester City Democrats and the Manchester firefighters union -with hundreds of anonymous, hang-up phone calls over two hours before the plot was called off.

Chuck McGee, the state Republican who came up with the idea, and Allen Raymond, the consultant with the telemarketing connections to make it possible, both pleaded guilty to conspiracy last year for their roles. McGee served seven months in federal prison, and Raymond is awaiting a five-month sentence. Both testified in U.S. District Court last week that Tobin put them in touch with each other so they could tie up Democratic phone lines, although they worked out the details on their own.

Federal prosecutors argued that Tobin was the linchpin of the scheme. The defense contended that Tobin knew only the general idea and was not guilty of a crime, only of a momentary lapse in judgment during a frenetic election season.

On the voters' rights count, the defense - whose bills are being paid by the RNC - argued that Tobin had no idea the targeted phone banks would be used to offer rides to the polls, and not just to tout candidates. Prosecutors said an experienced operative like Tobin would know that offering rides is a standard part of any "Get Out the Vote" effort. They argued that his goal in connecting the other men was to win on election day by any means necessary, including keeping Democrats from the polls.

Prosecutors would not say whether Tobin was offered a chance to plead guilty to a lesser count, like McGee and Raymond, but they were happy with the unanimous decision from the jury.

"We're pleased with the verdict," prosecutor Andrew Levchuk said, adding that the investigation would continue.

Tobin would not comment, nor would his lawyers. He stood silently when the verdict was read, wearing a gray pinstripe suit and showing no outward reaction. He left the courthouse arm-in-arm with his wife, Ellen, while his two lead defense attorneys - both of them partners in the Washington, D.C., firm Williams & Connolly - formed a silent shield in front.

Dane Butswinkas, who gave the opening and closing arguments in Tobin's defense, focused on trying to discredit Raymond while painting Tobin as a devoted family man. At one point, Butswinkas likened the case to the movie It's a Wonderful Life, comparing Tobin to hero George Bailey and Raymond - who hoped to get his five-month sentence reduced by cooperating with the government - to the unscrupulous Mr. Potter.

Tobin's two teenaged sons ("The Bigs," as Butswinkas called them) sat through most of the trial, while his two daughters ("The Littles," ages 4 and 7) were absent. None of his children was present yesterday, though Tobin's parents attended.

The jury spent 13 hours deliberating over two days, not counting an unexpected full-day break in the middle, after one of the jurors had to be taken to Concord Hospital with chest pains. That juror returned yesterday.

The defense asked for the jurors to be questioned individually to verify that the decision was unanimous. Afterward, foreman Laura Clement said the jury spent considerable time studying the language of the counts and weighing the evidence.

"It really came down to: Did the evidence support the facts, and could we agree that the government proved their case on each one of the counts?" she said, adding that the jury relied heavily on the instructions from Judge Steven McAuliffe.

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