Politics reporter for
@freep
, covering governor and state Legislature 📧chendrickson
@freepress
.com 📞 313-296-5743 📫 160 W. Fort St. Detroit, MI 48226
NEWS: Executive Director of
@MIGOP
confirmed his resignation. Jason Roe told
@politico
that "the election wasn’t stolen" and that "there is no one to blame but Trump" for his party's defeat, prompting GOP activists to deliver a resolution to fire him.
FALSE! Many of the voters on the list are not shown as having received or cast an absentee ballot. At least one woman listed seems to still be alive. There is no evidence that Michigan clerks counted ballots fraudulently cast on behalf of dead people.
Shirkey claimed that "too many dead people" voted in Michigan. Secretary of State's office isn't aware of any case of someone voting on behalf of a dead person and previous dead voter claims have been debunked. He repeated them anyway.
Michigan Supreme Court declines to take up case on Benson's authority to mail unsolicited absentee ballot applications to every registered voter. Courts have consistently found she acted legally.
Democrats in Michigan Senate pass SB 185 to allow graduate student research assistants be considered public employees, entitling them to collective bargaining rights.
As 2023 nears its end, Detroit is close to recording fewest homicides in almost 60 years. Detroit police data also shows drop in other crimes compared to same time last year:
-13% drop in nonfatal shootings
-36% drop in carjackings
From
@andreamsahouri
:
Flint city councilmember who endorsed Trump says he was told that not voting straight ticket would spoil his ballot. I spoke with Flint's clerk who said “it would be incorrect to instruct anybody about anything like that.”
I fact-checked Ramsland's affidavit. His turnout rates are wildly inaccurate. This is the third time he's filed an affidavit with incorrect turnout figures for Michigan.
.
@JocelynBenson
announced the completion of a series of post-election audits today. She said the audits confirm that the election was secure and the results are accurate. She called on leaders to stop spreading misinformation claiming otherwise.
Top 20 GDP-generating districts all elected Democratic representatives while 16 of the 20 bottom GDP-generating districts elected Republican representatives.
Not to mention that clerks successfully identified and rejected nearly 3,500 ballots cast by people alive when they voted who died before Election Day. We asked Shirkey’s office for evidence to back his claim about dead people voting, but didn’t hear back.
Latest absentee ballot numbers from the Michigan Secretary of State's Office as of Mon.
Absentee ballots sent: 1,676,958
Absentee ballots returned: 432,960
Benson declines invitation to testify before House Oversight Committee. Says the committee has provided a forum for debunked misinformation and cannot in good conscience accept invitation. Committee has a responsibility to state the results of election are accurate, Benson says.
Didn't want to miss an opportunity to chat with former Mattel designer and current Michigan state Sen. Mallory McMorrow, D-Royal Oak, about the new Barbie movie.
Dem lawmakers in the MI House today introduced a bill requiring MDOC to provide voter registration info to those released from prison and inform them that Michigan election law doesn't prohibit them from voting after serving a sentence.
Detroit, satellite voting centers open across the city today!
At centers, you can register to vote as well as request and return your absentee ballot. Absentee voting at centers ends 4 p.m. Nov. 7. The clerk's office must receive your ballot by 8 p.m. Nov. 8. 🗳️
Attorney General's office and Michigan State Police are following Senate Oversight Committee's recommendation in launching of investigation into those who have allegedly peddled election conspiracies for their own financial gain.
Michigan Senate passes bill to move Michigan’s presidential primary date from the second Tuesday in March to the second Tuesday in February. Bill heads to state House next.
On days like today, I am sad that I no longer live in D.C. and that the Newseum closed.
I would have walked down there to look at the front pages of local papers from across the country.
🗳️There's an election tomorrow in Michigan with gubernatorial, congressional and state legislative Dem and GOP primaries on the ballot and other races.
You still have time to register to vote, find out who's on your ballot and cast your vote. Here's how:
The two Republican members of the Wayne County Board of Canvassers voted against certifying the elections. Their Democratic colleagues were appalled. Within minutes, the Michigan Republican Party released a statement applauding the vote.
@Freep
:
NEW: Michigan Republicans score legal victory in lawsuit seeking last-minute court order nixing instructions for election challengers issued ahead of the primary. Michigan Court of Claims judge orders revisions.
NEW: Senate Oversight Committee released its long-awaited report on the Nov. 3 election. It found no evidence of widespread fraud and said voters should be confident in the results.
Redistricting commission will hold its first public hearings in Detroit this week. Many in the city are eager to seize the once-in-a-decade opportunity to do away with the gerrymandering they believe has shortchanged residents.
@freep
@Report4America
STORY: Gov. Whitmer repeals right-to-work, reinstates prevailing wage. She approved appropriations tied to the bills that make them referendum proof despite a promise she made to veto bills designed to circumvent the public's right to a referendum.
The same week Gov. Whitmer repealed Michigan's unenforceable abortion ban, a Texas judge issued a ruling invalidating the FDA's approval of a commonly used abortion pill. It's another fight over abortion access that could end up in the U.S. Supreme Court.
Caught up with Sen. McBroom outside the voting hall just minutes before voting began. On what a possible endorsement of DePerno and Karamo would mean, he said it would signal that a majority of the ppl here would rather send a message to the party and the nation than win in Nov.
Covering the fan scene in and around Ford Field on this historic game tonight for the Lions. I tried very hard while roaming the concourse to find a Lions’ Stafford jersey. This is all I spotted..,
.
@JocelynBenson
unveiled her "From Worst to First" agenda aimed at improving transparency and accountability in Michigan. According to a 2015 national study, Michigan ranked worst in the country when it comes to state ethics and transparency laws.
While reporting, I reviewed the list appointed election workers and found Michele Lundgren (she signed the fake certificate of electors for Trump). She's a GOP candidate on the city's Aug. ballot. After I reached out to the election dept., she was told she can't work the primary.
Detroit election workers who faced challengers demanding that they stop the count in 2020 return to work upcoming primary.
This time, they'll be joined by those who backed efforts to stop election officials from certifying the vote two years ago.
President Biden made a brief in person show of solidarity with striking UAW workers, telling them they’ve “earned a hell of a lot more than you’re getting paid now.” He went around the picket line fist bumping workers.
Whitmer closed with an invitation to attendees to come to Michigan, says the state boasts "phenomenal research universities, high quality of life, low cost of living" + is "changing the future of mobility in all ways possible."
"...we're always looking for great partners."
Gov. Whitmer takes the stage at the World Economic Forum for a panel on "The Return of Manufacturing."
Manufacturing is in Michigan's "DNA," Whitmer says. Says CHIPS and IRA passage will facilitate "onshoring" of the manufacturing supply chain.
NEW: Mich.'s elections bureau recommends state canvassers certify Reproductive Freedom for All and Promote the Vote amendments for a vote.
Organizers behind RFFA abortion rights amendment filed record-breaking 735,439 valid voter signatures, according to bureau estimate.
BIG NEWS: Judge Parker orders sanctions against Sidney Powell and attorneys involved in Kraken lawsuit to overturn Michigan's election. Lawyers must pay attorney fees incurred by Detroit in Michigan in lawsuit and complete training on pleading standards and election law.
New: Dem incumbent Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson has a serious cash advantage over her GOP rival Kristina Karamo in race to decide who will serve as Michigan's next chief elections officer, according to latest campaign finance reports.
At the Genesee County Jail where inmates who are registered voters will be given absentee ballots this morning to vote in Michigan’s primary. Those in jail waiting to be sentenced can vote in the state.
NEW: Republican Kristina Karamo wants to oversee elections in Michigan. Before the midterm, she seeks a court order threatening thousands of votes cast by Detroiters.
Props to
@CraigDMauger
and
@DNBethLeBlanc
for breaking this story last night.
The weight of this moment is sinking in as press awaits Biden’s arrival in MI. Of all the labor fights, strikes and tough contract negotiations in American history, a sitting U.S. president is believed to have never joined striking workers on a picket line until today.
FACT-CHECK: MI GOP Sec of State candidate Kristina Karamo launched her campaign vowing to clean up elections after she said she witnessed fraud as a challenger. A close look at her allegations show they don't provide evidence of fraud or wrongdoing.
In Birmingham where Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is expected to sign into law bills repealing the state’s 1931 abortion ban rendered unenforceable after voters approved a constitutional amendment creating an explicit right to seek abortions in the state.
INBOX: Voters Not Politicians says it "surpassed" signature collection goal to put Promote the Vote proposal on the Nov. ballot. VNP email follows statement from PTV saying organizers have gathered "more than enough signatures" to make the ballot. Filing deadline is 5 p.m. Mon.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed a motion for sanctions against Sidney Powell and the three Michigan attorneys who filed the so-called "Kraken" lawsuit that rested on debunked election conspiracies and misinformation.
Gov. Whitmer takes the stage at the World Economic Forum for a panel on "The Return of Manufacturing."
Manufacturing is in Michigan's "DNA," Whitmer says. Says CHIPS and IRA passage will facilitate "onshoring" of the manufacturing supply chain.
Board of State Canvassers rejects 3-0 recall petition targeting state Rep. Betsy Coffia, D-Traverse City. This is the second time the board has rejected a recall petition targeting Coffia. More recall petition approval votes to come.
More than 875k Michigan voters have already requested an absentee ballot for the upcoming Aug. 2 primary election, Secretary of State's office reports in latest release.
NEW: Michigan Supreme Court orders Board of State Canvassers to certify Promote the Vote constitutional amendment for this fall's ballot. From the order:
MI Rep. Matt Maddock and his wife, Meshawn Maddock (incoming MI GOP co-chair) joined an FB group where members have discussed possibility of a civil war, decried a ban on open carry inside the state Capitol and hope for a "big cleanup" of elected leaders.
RFFA spox says they're going to be filing a lawsuit with the Michigan Supreme Court ASAP to get the abortion rights proposal on the ballot, accuses board of disenfranchising hundreds of thousands of voters who signed their names to put proposal to a statewide vote.
At Detroit Branch NAACP news briefing on lawsuit filed by GOP secretary of state candidate Kristina Karamo that would subject Detroit voters to requirements no other voters in state are subject to and potentially invalidate tens of thousands of votes in the city.
There's a process in place in Michigan to ensure voter rolls are accurate and up-to-date.
Here's how Michigan election officials identify individuals no longer eligible to vote where they registered because they moved, died etc.
MI's Court of Appeals ruled that absentee ballots not received by the clerk by 8 PM on election day won't be counted even if they're postmarked on election day. Detroit's Clerk recommends dropping off ballots at voting centers or ballot box locations.
I'm thrilled to say I'll be joining
@freep
in partnership with
@PolitiFact
as a
@report4america
corps member, fact-checking federal, state and local candidates in a key swing state ahead of the 2020 election.
POLL: Abortion tied with inflation as issue that concerns Michigan voters the most, according to EPIC-MRA survey conducted this month.
64% of respondents indicated their support for Prop 3 to enshrine abortion rights in the state Constitution.
Detroit voters see disenfranchisement in Kristina Karamo's last-minute legal bid to tweak absentee ballot rules in a majority-Black city.
"I saw that and I'm going 'only for the city of Detroit?' What's wrong with you?" said Detroit voter Enid Cyrus.
Gov. Whitmer, Lt. Gov. Gilchrist, UAW President Shawn Fain and Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel all here to greet President Biden when he lands for his first campaign visit to Michigan this year
Group of U-M profs filed brief yesterday urging the Michigan Supreme Court to order Board of State Canvassers to certify Reproductive Freedom for All abortion rights amendment for placement on this fall's ballot.
Allen Park, Dearborn, Dearborn Heights, Ecorse, Flat Rock, Gibraltar, Grosse Pointe Woods, Hamtramck, Highland Park, Inkster, Lincoln Park, Livonia, Melvindale, River Rouge, Romulus, Southgate, Taylor, Wayne, Westland, Wyandotte, Canton Twp, Redford Twp, Sumpter Twp
The U.S. has seen over 2,000 newspapers disappear in the past 15 years. Over 65 million Americans reside in "news deserts" home to only one local paper or none at all. I explore the consequences in a new
@BrookingsGov
report:
PLAN AHEAD: Mon. is the last day to register to vote online in Michigan. If you mail in your application, it must be received or postmarked on or before Monday.
Starting Tue., you must register to vote in person at your clerk's office or satellite office w/ proof of residency.
This is incorrect.
Detroit's unofficial election results show roughly 250,000 Detroiters voted in November's election.
Detroit is home to about 670,000 people.
NEW: GOP candidate for Michigan secretary of state Kristina Karamo spoke on a candidates' panel this past weekend at a convention hosted by Church Militant, a Catholic right website denounced by the Catholic Church and deemed a hate group by the SPLC:
“I’m sick and tired of hearing the sanctimonious bullshit about the Democrats being the pro-democracy party,” Meijer said of DCCC ad buy in MI-03 GOP primary seen as giving Gibbs a boost among Trump’s base.
New EPIC-MRA poll results out today show 55% of voters say they would vote for Whitmer if the election were today while 39% say they'd back Dixon.
Last time there was a similar lead in a Michigan governor's race, it was 2010, notes
@paulegan4
:
In Birmingham where Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is expected to sign into law bills repealing the state’s 1931 abortion ban rendered unenforceable after voters approved a constitutional amendment creating an explicit right to seek abortions in the state.
INBOX:
@LtGovGilchrist
on
@SenMikeShirkey
: "This behavior is beneath the office he was elected to and the standard of decency the people of our state deserve." Shirkey called Jan. 6 insurrection a "hoax" and said he "spanked" Whitmer on legislative matters. Full statement:
UPDATE on investigation of alleged voting machine breach in wake of '20 election.
Special prosecutor took unusual step of asking a court to interpret state election law that could soon inform criminal charges. Court record indicates charges are imminent.
Hearing on sanctions against Sidney Powell and attorneys involved in lawsuit to overturn Michigan's election lasted about 6 hours. The federal judge spent most of it questioning why allegations of fraud and misconduct didn't seem to be properly vetted.
NEW: Sen. Ed McBroom, R-Vulcan, and Sen. Jeff Irwin, D-Ann Arbor, have asked AG Nessel to provide a legal opinion on whether Michigan redistricting commission's closed-door meeting yesterday violated the Michigan Constitution.
Detroit showed a huge improvement balancing precincts in most recent election. About 95% were balanced. Wayne County Board of Canvassers unanimously certified the results and passed a motion to commend Detroit election officials for the improvement.
Welfare dependency is not the result of individual laziness. Instead, it is today’s employers who are too negligent to ensure the economic wellbeing of their workers. My
@BostonReview
piece on the gig economy's self-delusion:
BREAKING:
@freep
joins other media organizations in a lawsuit filed in the Michigan Supreme Court demanding greater transparency from Michigan's redistricting commission. The challenge seeks recording of closed-door meeting memos withheld from the public.
NEW: Michigan's Attorney Grievance Commission recommends disciplinary action against lawyer Mayra Rodriguez whose name appears on the fake certificate of electors to award the state's 2020 Electoral College votes to Trump.
Pride flag flies for the 1st time at Detroit Regional Chamber's Mackinac Policy Conference in celebration of the start of LGBTQ pride month + expansion of the state's civil rights law to bar discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
Current and former Detroit lawmakers lay out their plans to file a lawsuit against the redistricting commission Monday in the Michigan Supreme Court alleging that the new maps illegally disenfranchise Black voters.
NEW: Dem lawmakers in Michigan eye repealing the state's "right-to-work" law, putting a national spotlight on the looming battle in Lansing.
Most states are right-to-work. Michigan could be the first in nearly 60 years to ditch the law. w/
@paulegan4
.
@local34022
deserves a raise b/c we’ve delivered time and again coverage that serves our communities and holds leaders accountable in the wake of the unprecedented from a global pandemic to an effort to overturn an election.
#FairContractFriday
#InvestInJournalists
#GuildStrong
NEW: All 4 year-olds in Mich. would have access to state-funded preschool before Gov. Whitmer leaves office under a "Pre-K for All" plan she'll unveil in her State of the State speech. It will save families an average of $10k/year, according to her office.
Latest absentee numbers from the Secretary of State --
As of last night:
-1,603,912 absentee ballots requested
-155,142 ballots submitted.
Same time in 2018 (when there wasn't universal right to no reason absentee voting):
-678,778 ballots requested
-57,067 ballots submitted
NEW with
@Dave_Boucher1
Michigan Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey called the deadly assault on the Capitol a "hoax," falsely claiming that it wasn't carried out by Trump supporters.
MI House Maj Floor Leader Abraham Aiyash says in tweet that Dem lawmakers in "coming days" will pursue policies to address gun violence. Gov. Whitmer has called for passage of universal background checks, red flag laws and safe storage requirements.