November 8, 2021
An election integrity watchdog has filed suit against Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson over claims that tens of thousands of dead residents have not been cleared from voter registration rolls, as required by federal law.
The lawsuit, filed by the Public Interest Legal Foundation last week, alleged that Benson is in violation of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, often referred to as “motor voter,” since it authorized people to register to vote when they renewed or obtained driver’s licenses or applied for public assistance. It was signed into law by then-President Bill Clinton.
“The Foundation’s analysis of Michigan’s voter roll and verifiable death records reveals that, as of August 2021, 25,975 potentially deceased registrants are on Michigan’s voter rolls. Of those, 23,663 registrants have been dead for five years or more, 17,479 registrants have been dead for at least ten years, and 3,956 registrants have been dead for at least twenty years,” the lawsuit states.
“Section 8 of the NVRA requires Michigan to ‘conduct a general program that makes a reasonable effort to remove the names of ineligible voters from the official lists of eligible voters by reason of…the death of the registrant,'” the suit continues.
The law also requires states to “complete, not later than 90 days prior to the date of a primary or general election for Federal office, any program the purpose of which is to systematically remove the names of ineligible voters from the official lists of eligible voters,” adding that under federal law, residents who are deceased can be removed from voter registration rolls at any time, though other names cannot be taken off 90 days or fewer from elections.
Benson’s “violations of the NVRA have harmed and continue to harm and frustrate the Foundation’s purpose of protecting the integrity of the electoral process, ensuring that accurate and current voter registration rolls are maintained, and educating the public about the same.
“The Foundation’s expenditure of significant time and money in Michigan seeking to rectify Defendant’s failure to clean up the voter rolls by removing the surfeit of deceased registrants from such rolls has also forced the Foundation to divert its limited resources from other states with similar issues,” the complaint states.
The organization found two deceased residents on voter registration rolls who would be 100 and 108 years old, respectively, if they were still alive.
The lawsuit goes on to also accuse Benson of NVRA violations that “have harmed and continue to harm and frustrate the Foundation’s purpose of protecting the integrity of the electoral process, ensuring that accurate and current voter registration rolls are maintained, and educating the public about the same.
“The Foundation’s expenditure of significant time and money in Michigan seeking to rectify Defendant’s failure to clean up the voter rolls by removing the surfeit of deceased registrants from such rolls has also forced the Foundation to divert its limited resources from other states with similar issues,” the complaint notes further.
“This case is about ensuring that deceased registrants are not receiving ballots,” Adams said in a statement.
“For over a year, we’ve shared specific data with the Michigan Secretary of State’s Office about the alarming problem of deceased registrants on Michigan’s voter rolls. Secretary Benson has done nothing to resolve the problem and is even refusing to hand over public documents related to these failures. The failure to remove deceased registrants creates an opportunity for fraud and makes Michigan’s elections less secure.”
But Tracy Wimmer, who is the director of media relations for Benson’s office, suggested there was no merit to the suit.
“Michigan maintains its voter registration list in accordance with all state and federal laws, including provisions for deceased voters. As we’ve seen throughout the past year, meritless lawsuits serve as press releases for those seeking to further election misinformation and undermine American democracy,” said Wimmer in an email to The Epoch Times.
Source: Conservative Brief
Comentarios