Whitmer, Benson, Nessel defend Michigan elections after Trump speech

LANSING, MI – Michigan leaders defended the state’s election security after President Donald Trump called for a federal investigation into his claim of voter-registration fraud in Muskegon County.

In his speech to the nation Thursday, July 16, Trump pointed to Muskegon County as part of his unconfirmed claims that the 2020 election was stolen.

Trump said that state police in 2020 raided a Democratic voting organization in Muskegon County then contacted the FBI in Detroit. He said the U.S. Department of Justice under former President Joe Biden ultimately ended the investigation.

“Tonight, I’m asking the FBI director to ensure that the matter is fully investigated and to work with the Department of Justice to prosecute those responsible for any crimes.”

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and state Attorney General Dana Nessel rejected Trump’s claim and said the state has had safe and secure elections.

“Michigan elections are safe and secure – any suggestion otherwise is designed to undermine our voters’ basic rights,” Whitmer said in a statement.

She said that results of the 2020 election have been repeatedly under review and found to be accurate. She said the state’s voting systems have been “rigorously tested, certified, and subject to strict standards before they are ever used in an election.”

“Furthermore, the results of the 2020 election have been repeatedly reviewed and consistently upheld as accurate. Conspiracy theories about the 2020 elections must come to an end. Tonight, President Trump also made claims about Michigan intended to suggest our voting system is somehow rigged. It isn’t, and his claim has been debunked by experts time and time again.”

At the time, no charges were lodged in connection with the case after it was referred to the FBI. State leaders maintained that a local clerk flagging the issue was a sign the elections system worked, but some state GOP leaders renewed calls to take action three years later.

Trump said his administration was releasing documents from the federal probe into Muskegon County, where in late 2020 state officials confirmed thousands of fraudulent voter registration applications had been submitted.

The case was referred to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, but no charges resulted. State officials said a local clerk reported the issue. 

Benson, who is seeking the Democratic nomination for governor, said Trump ignored Americans’ struggles to make ends meet and rising healthcare costs and “chose to rehash long debunked and baseless conspiracy theories about an election he lost almost six years ago.

“But none of his rhetoric changes what’s true: Michigan’s elections are secure and safe, and the results are an accurate reflection of the will of the people. … Because in every election, over 1,600 bipartisan professional election administrators and thousands of trained poll workers ensure that the law is followed and that every valid vote counts.”

She urged residents to serve as poll workers in upcoming elections to see that elections are secure.

Nessel said Trump has spent a decade trying to convince voters that elections are illegitimate.

“He once again wants to distract you from his low approval ratings, skyrocketing costs and forever war with Iran by asking you to ignore the fact that he won in 2024 and focus solely on the 2020 election that he still refuses to admit he lost.”

“Whether it’s unlawful executive orders, baseless demand letters for private voter information or the President’s continuous misinformation campaign, my office stands ready to fight back against this administration’s attempt to strip states of their constitutional right to administer our elections.”

She has challenged Trump in court over voter information. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals recently upheld a court order blocking the Trump Administration from obtaining the state’s electronic voter list without redacting sensitive, personal information.