<aside> <img src="/icons/bell_blue.svg" alt="/icons/bell_blue.svg" width="40px" /> Below is a general summary of the potential election administration vulnerabilities identified in Michigan.
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Michigan’s canvassing and certification processes have a strong statutory foundation, as well as clear guidance from the Secretary of State’s Election Officials’ Manual. After 2020, Michigan remains a target for those seeking to perpetuate election conspiracies, and as a result, the state’s elections remain vulnerable to the threats posed by such conspiracies. The law itself is strong, and thus, many of the election vulnerabilities in Michigan are created and sustained by bad faith actors attempting to violate unambiguous law. Potential vulnerabilities should be monitored, and pro-democracy advocates should ensure vulnerabilities are not exploited by individuals seeking to thwart free and fair elections.
Below, we highlight areas that have been targeted in the past and potential areas that may be vulnerable this election cycle. For more information on these officials and counties to monitor this November, see Michigan Election Officials Findings.
Though election administration is decentralized in the state, election-denying groups are anything but. Groups in Michigan continue to coordinate requests for recounts and audits, as well as undermining the integrity of the state’s election system with unsubstantiated claims of fraud. The strength of the election denial movement in Michigan has also led to local officials refusing to certify election results.
Thirty-eight members of Boards of County Canvassers or County Clerks in Michigan were identified as election deniers: 35 canvassers and three County Clerks.
Multiple canvassers have ties to in-state and national election denial groups, including officials in Wayne, Chippewa, Clinton, Barry, and Macomb counties.
Nine Michigan election officials expressed support for subverting election administration and overturning the results during the post-election period in 2020, including in Alpena, Macomb, Calhoun, and Huron counties.
In Michigan, votes must be counted electronically. Hand-counting is much more prone to error, is much less secure, and takes significantly longer than machine counting.
In 2020, the Antrim County Board of Commissioners voted to require that ballots be hand-counted in the county. The Antrim County Clerk and Michigan Bureau of Elections rejected the decision as contrary to state law. Earlier this year, a candidate for County Clerk won the Republican primary election, running on a platform that includes hand-counting ballots. Barry Mugridge, a member of the St. Clair County Board of County Canvassers, advocated for hand-counting ballots, claiming that there was “a lot of malfeasance going on” with voting machines.
As a result of Michigan’s low barrier to begin the recount process, the recount process has been used liberally and usually at great cost to the state with no realistic prospect of changing results. In response to the need to prevent delays, Michigan passed legislation modifying several aspects of the recount process to prevent its misuse but it will not be in effect for the November 2024 General Election.
In Michigan, threats against election workers and officials are real and remain a top concern. Protecting election officials is a top priority for the Secretary of State heading into 2024 and workers will be equipped with tools for de-escalation and will have access to law enforcement and the Secretary of State’s office via text.