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AG says office won’t defend public board members who don’t handle duties

Dana Nessel, Michigan Attorney General photo
Associated Press

A letter Wednesday from Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office says members of state boards who ignore their legal responsibilities won’t get state legal assistance

Democratic state Senator Jeremy Moss requested the letter. Moss says he’s particularly concerned about whether Republicans on the Board of State Canvassers will certify the results of the November elections.

The letter is not a formal interpretation of state law or policy. But Moss says the letter “sends a signal” to the board:

“And if they don’t perform what is their ministerial duty in certifying an election, they could deal with penalties from that.”

But it’s the attorney general who will decide whether the board fulfilled its responsibilities under the law. A Republican on the board calls that an “insidious method of intimidation.”

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