RNC Pressures Michigan to Update Illegal Mail Ballot Lists

WASHINGTON – The RNC sent a letter to Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson demanding urgent action to clean up Michigan’s inaccurate and outdated permanent mail ballot list. Michigan law requires the removal of inactive voters from the permanent mail ballot list. Yet this includes nearly 92,000 inactive voters, and Secretary Benson’s Election Officials’ Manual misstates the legal requirement on this issue. Secretary Benson must bring the Manual and the permanent mail ballot list into compliance with Michigan law to ensure a fair election.

RNC Chairman Michael Whatley stated: “Michigan’s failure to maintain its permanent mail ballot list in compliance with the law has created a system which is open to fraud. With almost 92,000 inactive voters slated to automatically receive mail ballots, this is a direct threat to a secure vote. The RNC urges swift action from the Secretary of State to rectify the issues plaguing the permanent mail ballot list and promote election integrity in the Great Lakes State.”

Michigan Republican Party Chairman Pete Hoekstra stated: “Michigan is ground zero for November’s election. There’s no excuse for our Secretary of State to operate with inaccurate and old mail ballot lists that are out of compliance with our laws. Updating our permanent mail ballot list is crucial to maintaining Michigan’s election integrity and having a secure vote this November.” 

Background:

• Removing inactive voters is essential to maintaining electoral integrity and avoiding errors – such as mailing ballots to individuals who have moved or are otherwise no longer eligible to automatically receive mail ballots. If ballots are sent to old addresses, there is a risk that these ballots could be compromised and fraudulently cast by someone other than the intended recipient.
• In general, any voter can become a permanent mail ballot voter and automatically receive mail ballots for future elections. However, Michigan law states that when a permanent mail ballot voter becomes inactive due to a change of residence or not voting for 6 consecutive years, that voter must be removed from the permanent mail ballot list.
• The law states that such inactive voters must be removed; however, Secretary Benson’s Election Officials’ Manual states only that such voters can be removed by officials. This misstates Michigan law and may explain why nearly 92,000 inactive voters are currently on Michigan’s permanent mail ballot list.
• The RNC’s request comes on the heels of two of the RNC’s lawsuits against Secretary Benson dealing with signature verification and inflated voter rolls. 
• There is a clear election integrity problem in Michigan, and we are committed to fixing it.

Read the letter HERE.