Michigan Republicans' Senate nominee petitions 'infected' with fake signatures: complaint
A complaint filed with Michigan election officials by Democrats urges an investigation of several Republican Senate candidates for alleged signature fraud, reported Bridge Michigan on Friday.
"In a Friday letter to the Michigan Board of State Canvassers, attorneys for the Michigan Democratic Party and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee asked election officials to investigate nominating petitions submitted by Republican U.S. Senate candidates Mike Rogers, Sandy Pensler and Justin Amash, as well as former candidate Peter Meijer," reported Lauren Gibbons. "The request claims that the candidates’ submissions appear to be 'infected' with potentially fraudulent signatures, pointing to instances of petition sheets that appeared to be filled out by only one person, voters’ names appearing across multiple petitions in different handwriting and mismatches in petition circulator handwriting as evidence that the petitions warrant further review."
Republicans have denounced the challenge, with Pensler's spokesman saying, “Democrats can’t beat Republicans at the ballot box so it looks like they are trying to eliminate Republicans from the ballot.”
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But this wouldn't be the first time signature collection has caused problems for Michigan Republicans. In 2022, five out of ten Republican candidates challenging Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer were kicked off the ballot after it was discovered they relied on 68,000 names from fraudulent circulators, which ultimately led to media personality Tudor Dixon being chosen as the nominee.
Nor is the issue entirely limited to Republicans, noted the report: "Two years later, invalid signatures may again derail important campaigns, including former state Sen. Adam Hollier's primary challenge to Democratic U.S. Rep. Shri Thanedar. Staff in the Wayne County Clerk’s office this week recommended against certifying Hollier's signatures."
The Michigan Senate election is an open seat, with the retirement of longtime Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow. Democratic candidates for the race include Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin and also actor Hill Harper.