State officials in Michigan say they will help oversee voting in Detroit during the upcoming presidential election. The move comes after numerous problems arose during the city’s August primary elections. During the primaries, polling locations were changed at the last minute, there was trouble counting absentee ballots, and the Michigan Board of Canvassers threatened to withhold certifying the results unless the state took control of Detroit’s elections.
Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson says Michigan is not going THAT far…but WILL add absentee ballot drop boxes and satellite clerk offices…while helping Detroit recruit at least six thousand new election workers.
“Especially now," she said, "with the pandemic and all the challenges that brings…it’s a challenge that anyone can be on their own.”
Officials stress the importance of counting every vote. President Trump won Michigan in 2016 by about an 11-thousand vote margin, out of almost five million votes cast.
