As Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson was decorating her Christmas tree with her four-year-old son on Saturday night, she looked outside to see dozens of armed protestors stalking her house, the BBC reports. The protestors shouted threats and chanted “Stop the Steal,” a catchphrase for people who refuse to accept the victory of President-elect Joe Biden.
On her Twitter account, Benson described trying to sit in her living room to watch “The Grinch” with her son while hearing obscenities and threats broadcast through bullhorns into the normally-quiet neighborhood.
“The demands made outside my home were unambiguous, loud, and frightening,” Benson said in a statement. “They targeted me in my role as Michigan’s Chief Election Officer. But the threats of those gathered weren’t actually aimed at me–or any other elected officials in the state. They were aimed at the voters.”
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and Wayne County (Michigan) Prosecutor Kym Worthy released a joint statement noting that protestors should not use threats of harm or acts of intimidation, but they should instead process complaints through the state offices, not at residences.
.@MIAttyGen @dananessel and Wayne County Prosecutor @KymLWorthy issued the following joint statement regarding the protest in front of Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s home Saturday night: pic.twitter.com/RTTO5F2JEu
— Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel (@MIAttyGen) December 7, 2020