Michigan’s Democrat-controlled Senate passed a package of four DIRTY election bills yesterday, referred to as the “State Voting Rights Act.”
The bills, now heading to the Democrat-controlled House, have stirred controversy among critics asserting they represent a significant state government takeover of elections and threaten election integrity on a number of fronts, not the least of which is the special treatment afforded to “protected classes” of people. In addition, Senate Bills 401 through 404 shift control of elections from the legislature to the state’s courts and executive branch, giving the secretary of state unprecedented power over local governments.
For example, SB 401 empowers court-appointed monitors to oversee local elections, opens the door to ranked-choice voting, and forces local governments to notify the SOS office before changing even the location of a ballot drop box. It also funds the expenses of candidates from protected classes to run for office.
Patrice Johnson, Chair of Pure Integrity Michigan Elections (PIME), described the bills as a major blow to election integrity. “Under the auspices of equity, these bills create favored ‘protected classes,’” she said. “They give the state judicial and executive branches of government authoritarian control over local jurisdictions and minimize the role of duly elected legislators. They use taxpayer dollars to fund the government takeover.”