Michigan Sec. of State Knocks Down Trump’s Mail-In Voting Lies

Jocelyn Benson, Michigan’s Secretary of State, took on President Donald Trump’s lies on mail-in voting during an interview with MSNBC.

“A lot of information and misinformation to unpack there and a lot of alarming stuff. Let me get your general response to what he said,” she was asked.

“I mean, first, again, we have been voting by mail in Michigan and many other states for decades,” Benson replied. “And this year is the first year you can vote by mail without having to state a reason. So more people are doing it. But the security provisions remain in place and they haven’t changed and been time tested.”

She added that “we want people to rest assured that the extra time that it may take us to count our ballots is a reflection of the process working. It is a reflection of us working to ensure we’re checking the signatures, we’re securing the ballots, we’re ensuring an accurate count, and any suggestion to the otherwise is just going to have the impact or the intended effect of sowing seeds of doubt and that is not based in any facts.”

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“We’re going to move forward with making sure that whatever the results are of the election in Michigan,” she continued, noting that “today and in November,” results “are accurate, and that people are trusting them and we’re going to push back against any attempts from anyone to otherwise sow seeds of doubt and set up a narrative where people doubt the results of the election when they have every reason to have faith in the results.”

You can watch the interview below.

In May, President Donald Trump threatened to withhold Michigan’s federal funding after Benson announced that all state residents would receive applications for absentee ballots, allowing them to vote-by-mail.

“Breaking: Michigan sends absentee ballots to 7.7 million people ahead of Primaries and the General Election,” the president tweeted. “This was done illegally and without authorization by a rogue Secretary of State. I will ask to hold up funding to Michigan if they want to go down this Voter Fraud path!”

“By mailing applications, we have ensured that no Michigander has to choose between their health and their right to vote,” Benson said at the time. “Voting by mail is easy, convenient, safe, and secure, and every voter in Michigan has the right to do it.”

The president has continued his attacks since then. Yesterday, he threatened to sue the state of Nevada after its legislature approved a measure that would automatically send mail-in ballots to all registered voters.