Another failure for Trump’s attempt to dis-enfranchise millions of voters. All 83 counties certified their respective elections. The final formal vote for certification of the 2020 election result in Michigan is three aye, one abstention. The abstainer was MAGA-loving Board of Canvassers member Norman Shinkle.
Elections Director Jonathan Brater stated that the election went off without any major irregularities, and those “out of balance” counties–where the number of voters signed in is different than the number ballots cast in that area–will not have a significant impact on the overall outcome of the state’s votes.
Assistant State Attorney General Heather Meingast noted that the state constitution does not allow the Board to order an audit prior to the certification.
There were between 780 to 800 people who signed up to make public comments. While noting that they board has a “duty” to certify the elections, Aaron Van Langevelde, the staff attorney for Michigan House Republicans who serves as the vice-chair of the Board, pushed to have the comments heard prior to the vote, in a possible attempt to delay the certification.
Christopher Thomas, a former Elections Director for the state, noted that the Board has no power to overturn elections results submitted to the State Board, and that its duty is strictly administorial.
Republican board member Norman Shinkle asked Detroit elections official David Baxter why there weren’t Republican poll workers at every polling station. Baxter responded directly saying they didn’t have enough Republicans respond to fill the positions.
A former Republican member of the Board, Jeff Timmer, stated unequivocally that the Board had not other authority but to certify the results, which show President-elect Joe Biden won the state by more than 15 times the margin of victory of the 2016 election.
Lara Cox, the chair of the Michigan Republican Party, was one of few commenters who objected to certification, claiming without evidence that the “election process was slanted against Republicans.”