The Senate’s consideration of federal voting rights legislation this week serves as a stark reminder that governors are currently the last line of defense against “efforts by Republican-controlled legislatures to restrict voting rights.” In Michigan, the stakes in this year’s gubernatorial race couldn’t be higher as all 12 GOP gubernatorial candidates have either stoked distrust around our democratic processes or committed to support legislation that will make it harder for all Michiganders to vote.
Republicans like James Craig, Garrett Soldano, and Tudor Dixon have all expressed support for an Arizona-style “audit” in Michigan, despite the multi-million dollar sham exercise reinforcing the fact that there is no evidence of fraud and actually netting more votes for Biden than in the certified results. Ryan Kelley participated in the violent insurrection on January 6th as one of the thousands spurred on by the belief that the White House was stolen from former President Trump.
And between his issues page and intro ad, Rinke made the baseless claim that “2020 election was rife with administrative problems, leading to a tainted election” and pledged to “audit the voter rolls” – an extreme step that even the most vocal candidates on this issue have yet to take in their crusade to undermine public trust in the electoral process and limit Michiganders’ freedom to participate in democracy.
Meanwhile, Governor Whitmer vetoed several anti-voter bills that aimed to dismantle the democratic process, weaken voting rights, and suppress Michiganders’ vote.
MDP spokesperson Rodericka Applewhaite issued the following statement:
“This entire crop of Republicans running for governor have already shown Michiganders that they’ll stop at nothing to undermine our democracy and strip away the right to vote The stakes couldn’t be higher because governors are the last line of defense for protecting access to the ballot box. That’s why Governor Whitmer has stood up time and again to ensure that every voter – including seniors, Michiganders living in rural areas, overseas military members, and communities of color – don’t lose their fundamental right to vote.”
