Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson. (Photo courtesy michigan.gov)LANSING -- Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson was joined at a press conference today, April 21, by organizational leaders and elected officials from across the state to denounce Michigan Senate Republicans' 39-bill voter suppression package. An analysis of these bills finds they harm election administration and voting rights.
"The bills that make up the majority of this legislative package do nothing to advance the integrity of our democracy; they simply undo many of the policies that made last year’s election the most accessible and secure in our state’s history," said Secretary Benson. "Instead of working across the aisle to listen to clerks, the state Bureau of Elections, or voters, those behind these bills choose to ignore the data, truth and best practices and promote policies that will silence the voices of all voters. Their actions are an embarrassment and an affront to every citizen they are sworn to serve."
Benson was joined by Ingham County Clerk Barb Byrum; State Senator Paul Wojno, Democratic vice chair of the Michigan Senate Elections Committee; the Reverend Dr. Steve Bland Jr., president of the Council of Baptist Pastors; and Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan. The speakers addressed specifics of the bill package and the obstacles it would create to voting access for Michigan citizens. The following are excerpts from their statements.
Ingham County Clerk Barb Byrum: "The bills in this package show no trace of the expertise, insight and data that have been shared with legislators in good faith by election administrators on both sides of the aisle. Sensible improvements to our election processes are needed, but those reforms should make our elections more inclusive, more efficient and more secure. Instead, these bills amount to a willful malicious attempt to strip voting rights away from Michigan’s citizens."
State Senator Paul Wojno: "These proposed bills on election reform are scattershot solutions to imaginary problems, and they would construct deliberate barriers to voting for many, including our seniors. We should make voting easier, not harder; and I remain committed to working with Secretary Benson and my legislative colleagues on both sides of the aisle to ensure the voices of hardworking residents of all ages can cast their ballots when, where, and however it best suits them."
Rev. Dr. Steve Bland: "After historic voter turnout last year, it is shocking and disgraceful that some of our state’s elected officials, who are here to serve the people, would attempt to pass legislation that disenfranchises them. While millions of Michigan voters have made their voices clear, these bills seek to silence them. The people of this state deserve better, and we will continue to fight back against any attempt to make it more difficult or less safe to vote."
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan: "Despite what the sponsors of these bills claim, the true intent of these bills is clear: to make it harder for people in Detroit and other communities like it to vote. The arbitrary requirements and restrictions in these bills will do nothing to make elections more secure, they will disenfranchise voters and cost us all in the long run."
Analysis of the bills
Here are just a few examples of the analysis of these bills:
BILLS TO RESTRICT VOTING RIGHTS
• SB 273 Enables county canvassers or the Secretary of State to remove or prohibit drop boxes if they don’t meet unnecessarily restrictive, unrealistic, and unfunded security protocols.
• SB 285 Limits voting by mail to those fortunate enough to own or have access to a copy machine, as it requires a photocopy of ID to be included with mailed absentee applications. In-person requests would require showing ID.
• SB 286 Bans use of drop boxes on Election Day, when they are most needed. (Ban starts at 5 p.m. the night before.)
• SB 287 Bans prepaid postage on absentee ballot return envelopes.
• SB 311 Only allows military overseas, and not their dependents, to return ballots electronically using their Common Access Card, which service members say is notoriously unreliable, and the Department of Defense has not agreed to make available for voting.
BILLS TO HARM ELECTION ADMINISTRATION
• SB 279 Allows two challengers per party for every for 2,999 ballots at an absentee ballot counting board, and one additional challenger per party for each additional 2,999 ballots. But total ballot count is unknown prior to counting, and this volume of challengers could be unmanageable.
• SB 280 Limits to 100 days the canvassing of initiative petitions, with no exceptions, but provides no funding for additional Bureau of Elections staff needed to accomplish this.
• SB 283 Provides only 10 hours for pre-processing absentee ballots even though that proved insufficient and the national best practice is seven days. This will not prevent delayed results that enable the misinformation that harms voter trust in elections.
• SB 284 Bans local election jurisdictions from accepting non-government grants of all kinds, despite failure of the state to fund elections.
• SB 289 Enables state legislators to appropriate or withhold federal election funds, despite failure of the state to fund elections.
• SB 290 and 291 Ban nonpartisan challengers and allow all candidates to appoint challengers. Remove felony penalty for those appointed based on false statements.
SIGNIFICANTLY FLAWED BILLS
• SB 274 Allows pre-registration at 16 years old, but only at a Secretary of State office instead of allowing youths all registration methods available to other citizens.
• SB 275 and 276 Allow video recording of audits (which is already allowed) and absentee ballot counting boards (which would violate voter privacy when a ballot is found to have been submitted without a secrecy sleeve) and require the Bureau of Elections to host those videos online without providing funding to do so.
• SB 277 Requires deceased voter registration cancellation but without clear matching criteria and protections against wrongful removal.
• SB 278 Redundantly requires sealed ballot envelopes to be placed in sealed ballot containers.
A full analysis of the bill package can be found here.
