Michigan's Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson has called out Macomb County Clerk Anthony Forlini for making "reckless accusations" after he claimed to have discovered non-U.S. citizens on the state's voter rolls. Amid an investigation by the Michigan Bureau of Elections (BOE), the claims have been largely refuted, with results indicating the majority of the 15 flagged individuals were either U.S. citizens or had been removed from the rolls, while the status of others is still under review, as reported by the Michigan Department of State.
The BOE investigation, detailed at the National Association of Secretaries of State winter conference, found discrepancies in Forlini's list, with one legally voting American citizen now under criminal investigation, two verified U.S. citizens at risk of losing their voter registration, and others previously removed or under further review without a single one being yet confirmed as an ineligible voter the department has affirmed their commitment to ensuring that these kinds of allegations, which have the potential to erroneously disenfranchise voters, are thoroughly vetted, and the department highlighted that they'd cancelled over 1.1 million outdated or ineligible registrations under Secretary Benson's administration.
A request for additional information on how the identification of these alleged non-citizens was conducted has been sent to Clerk Forlini by Michigan Elections Director Jonathan Brater, who is seeking clarity on the specifics of the clerk's investigative methods. Meanwhile, MDOS Chief of Staff Christina Anderson clarified the procedures followed when providing a list of potential jurors to counties, which inherently includes both eligible and ineligible individuals due to the legal allowance for non-U.S. citizens to hold a driver's license or state ID.
Authorities have been vocal about the infrequency of non-citizen registration and voting. David Becker, executive director and founder of the Center for Election Innovation and Research, stated, per the Michigan Department of State, "The existence of noncitizen registration and voting is extraordinarily rare," underscoring Michigan's reputation for maintaining clean voter lists, according to his two decades of experience working with voter lists and states across the U.S.
Simultaneously, Forlini's interactions with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) are placing Michigan amidst a controversial lawsuit that spans over numerous states, which implicates the demand for voter information that state officials are hesitant to provide without understanding the DOJ's intentions or security measures, Secretary Benson has taken a firm stance against sharing private voter information with any entity that may threaten the freedoms of Michigan residents, as per the Michigan Department of State, "I will not bend the knee to anyone who threatens the rights and freedoms of Michiganders – not now, not ever."
