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Macomb County hiring contractor to look at election machine

A voter casts his ballot during a special election in Georgia's 6th Congressional District special election last June. Georgia is the largest state that exclusively still uses electronic voting machines that don't leave a paper trail, a major concern for election officials and cybersecurity experts.
Joe Raedle
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Getty Images
A voter casts his ballot during a special election in Georgia's 6th Congressional District special election last June. Georgia is the largest state that exclusively still uses electronic voting machines that don't leave a paper trail, a major concern for election officials and cybersecurity experts.

Pro V&V, based in Alabama, has done work in Georgia and Arizona since the 2020 election.

Michigan’s third-largest county, where voters backed former President Donald Trump in 2020, is hiring a specialist to examine its election hardware and software.

The work in Macomb County is not a second look at the results of the presidential election. Rather, the Republican county clerk, who was elected last year, said he wants to lead the state in “election integrity.”

A contractor, Pro V&V, will be paid roughly $16,000 to take apart the county election server, Anthony Forlini said Tuesday.

Pro V&V will take pictures, record serial numbers and perform other tasks to get a “complete forensic image” of the server and hard drive.

“I want to make sure we’re moving forward with the best practices,” Forlini, a former state lawmaker, told The Associated Press. “This isn’t about overturning 2020 or anything along those lines. ... I’m not worried about the past. I’m working on the future.”

Forlini said state election officials are aware of the project and believe it’s a “good thing to do.”

Pro V&V, based in Alabama, has done work in Georgia and Arizona since the 2020 election. It is accredited by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission to certify machines.

The Michigan elections bureau “has always maintained that jurisdictions are welcome to pay for review of their systems” by accredited contractors, spokeswoman Tracy Wimmer said.