Whitmer: State prepared to fight election interference attempts

With so many closely contested races in Michigan, authorities are on the lookout for efforts to meddle with elections or harass election workers.

A new state law creates new penalties for election interference. That includes threats to election workers, disrupting polling places and attempting to interfere with absentee vote counting boards, which happened four years ago in Detroit.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Monday that state and local law enforcement agencies are ready.

“We’ve done tabletop exercises for a while and I feel confident that we are prepared, and I remain hopeful that all of this preparation is not necessary, but should it be, we will be on top of it,” she told the Michigan Public Radio Network. “We, of course, are living in unique times and that’s why we have done a lot of work with the Secretary of State’s office and the Attorney General’s office as well as local clerks’ offices to make sure that there are severe penalties for people that mess around, that there’s accountability for those who want to undermine the election.”

The U.S. Department of Justice also announced that it will have election monitors in 27 states, including Michigan. The cities include Detroit, Grand Rapids, Flint, Ann Arbor, Warren and Hamtramck where officials will be on the lookout for voting rights violations. The DOJ has done this sort of monitoring in previous election years.

A pro-Trump Michigan attorney faces a criminal trial starting next month for allegedly tampering with voting machines following the 2020 presidential. Another new law in this election cycle also clarifies that local canvassing boards are required to certify election results based on the numbers provided by local clerks.