{"id":2337269,"date":"2024-09-05T13:51:02","date_gmt":"2024-09-05T17:51:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/michigan-secretary-of-state-reiterates-threats-to-election-officials\/"},"modified":"2024-09-05T13:55:05","modified_gmt":"2024-09-05T17:55:05","slug":"michigan-secretary-of-state-reiterates-threats-to-election-officials","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/michigan-secretary-of-state-reiterates-threats-to-election-officials\/","title":{"rendered":"Michigan Secretary Of State Reiterates Threats To Election Officials"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fmichigan-secretary-of-state-reiterates-threats-to-election-officials%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2337269&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Michigan\u200c Secretary of\u200b State\u200c Jocelyn Benson has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/amazon-labor-union-president-celebrates-hamas-attacks\/\" title=\"Amazon Union President Praises Hamas Attacks\">threatened legal\u2064 action<\/a> against election\u2062 officials\u2064 reluctant to certify election results, reinforcing \u200dthese warnings during a\u2063 recent interview with Marc Elias, a lawyer known for his involvement in the Trump-Russia collusion narrative. Benson emphasized\u2063 that counties \u200dmust certify results without question or face consequences, referring to a 2022 proposal\u200b that limits\u2063 canvassers&#8217; discretion \u200din certification. She \u2064expressed confidence in the state&#8217;s\u2063 ability to enforce compliance, characterizing resistance as politically\u200d motivated attempts to create a narrative of electoral illegitimacy. Furthermore, Benson&#8217;s\u200c collaboration with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/teachers-unions-aclu-want-biden-to-extend-student-loan-repayment-pause-cancel-student-debt\/\" title=\"Teachers Unions, ACLU Want Biden To Extend Student Loan Repayment Pause, Cancel Student Debt\">left-leaning organizations<\/a> and her initiatives to combat \u200delection misinformation have \u200cdrawn criticism, portraying her actions as authoritarian and detrimental to election integrity.\u2063 During the interview, \u2063she described Elias as a &#8220;champion for democracy,&#8221; despite his controversial background\u2062 related \u200cto\u200d electoral claims against\u200b Donald \u2062Trump.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson doubled down on threats of legal action against election officials who hesitate to certify election results as reported during an interview with Democrat lawyer and Trump-Russia collusion hoaxer Marc Elias.<\/p>\n<p>Benson appeared in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=FxIJZz7yz6w\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">an interview<\/a> for Elias&rsquo; leftist <a href=\"https:\/\/www.influencewatch.org\/organization\/democracy-docket-legal-fund-ddlf\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">group<\/a> Democracy Docket on Aug. 30. Elias was <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/05\/10\/federal-judge-eviscerates-russia-collusion-hoaxer-marc-elias-for-aiming-to-undermine-new-york-elections\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">instrumental<\/a> in orchestrating the infamous Christopher Steele dossier, accusing then-candidate Donald Trump of working with Russian agents.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Just weeks after <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Jb59sk-UmAw&amp;t=225s\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">threatening<\/a> counties that hesitate to certify election results, Benson reiterated the point in the interview with Elias, threatening state legal action unless canvassers certify the reported results with no questions asked.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s going to be much harder legally, practically, realistically for anyone to not certify and get away with it,&rdquo; Benson said. &ldquo;If they don&rsquo;t like the election results, we&rsquo;ll be there the minute, the second it happens.&rdquo;<strong> <\/strong><\/p>\n<p>She apparently referenced Proposal 2, <a href=\"https:\/\/ballotpedia.org\/Michigan_Proposal_2,_Voting_Policies_in_Constitution_Amendment_(2022)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">passed<\/a> in 2022, which according to Ballotpedia <a href=\"https:\/\/ballotpedia.org\/Michigan_Proposal_2,_Voting_Policies_in_Constitution_Amendment_(2022)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">gutted<\/a> boards of canvassers&rsquo; ability to decide whether to certify election results, making it a &ldquo;ministerial, clerical, nondiscretionary duty.&rdquo; As The Federalist previously <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/05\/10\/federal-judge-eviscerates-russia-collusion-hoaxer-marc-elias-for-aiming-to-undermine-new-york-elections\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a>, the left-wing litigation firm Campaign Legal Center has been pushing similar provisions in other states.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;You have a responsibility to certify the election results if you&rsquo;re in those positions,&rdquo; Benson said. &ldquo;If you abdicate that responsibility, we will seek consequences.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>She dismissed potential objections to election results, boiling them down to &ldquo;political pressure.&rdquo; Benson reiterated her threat to steamroll those with election concerns.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;re not going to be successful. We&rsquo;ll get the results certified,&rdquo; Benson said. &ldquo;What will happen, also, is there will be legal consequences.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Benson claimed those with election integrity concerns are acting in bad faith to suppress voting.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The depths to which people will go to try to create this sense of illegitimacy, this sense that laws are being violated, and really just intimidate agencies,&rdquo; Benson said. &ldquo;What they&rsquo;re really doing is trying to create controversy over what is actually a nonpartisan, well-designed effort to engage more people in the political process regardless of how they&rsquo;re going to vote.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>But Benson took <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/03\/25\/exclusive-zuckerberg-connected-nonprofit-helped-shift-michigans-2020-voting-rules\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">input<\/a> on loosening state absentee ballot rules ahead of the 2020 election from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gold-medalist-found-sleeping-in-the-park-after-raging-over-olympic-village-conditions-the-food-is-bad\/\" title=\"Gold Medalist Found Sleeping in the Park After Raging Over Olympic Village Conditions - &#039;The Food Is Bad&#039;\">left-wing &#038;ldquo<\/a>;get out the vote&rdquo; group National Vote at Home Institute. During that election, the group <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/05\/13\/controversial-wisconsin-clerk-admits-to-violating-election-law-claims-she-doesnt-understand-it\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">sent<\/a> a Democrat operative to Green Bay, Wisconsin, where he gained access to absentee ballots and guided the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/controversial-wisconsin-clerk-admits-to-violating-election-law-claims-she-doesnt-understand-it\/\" title=\"Wisconsin Clerk Admits Breaking Election Law, Cites Lack of Understanding\">ballot curing process<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h4>An Authoritarian Trend<\/h4>\n<p>Benson has previously <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=FxIJZz7yz6w\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">threatened<\/a> counties that hesitate to certify election results with legal action, emphasizing canvassers are only allowed to do their job as a &ldquo;ministerial&rdquo; task.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;If someone were to violate the law and not certify the election at the local level, we will come for you,&rdquo; Benson <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Jb59sk-UmAw&amp;t=225s\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a> in a YouTube video. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t even think about it, because we&rsquo;ll get you.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Benson asked Michiganders to <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/08\/02\/secretary-of-state-asks-michiganders-to-report-their-neighbors-for-election-misinformation\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">report<\/a> others for spreading election &ldquo;misinformation,&rdquo; as The Federalist first reported Aug. 2.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Soon after this news broke, a resident came forward saying Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/08\/07\/letter-from-michigan-ag-threatens-resident-with-prosecution-for-misleading-election-information\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">threatened<\/a> to prosecute her in criminal court for &ldquo;misinformation&rdquo; unless she removed Facebook posts with concerns about a local polling place.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Benson also <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/08\/02\/secretary-of-state-asks-michiganders-to-report-their-neighbors-for-election-misinformation\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">launched<\/a> a &ldquo;Democracy Ambassador&rdquo; program in July, which recruits residents to echo government talking points about elections to silence &ldquo;misinformation.&rdquo;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;When the misinformation hits, you can be a voice for truth: a &lsquo;democracy ambassador,&rsquo;&rdquo; Benson said. &ldquo;Any citizen can sign up to get weekly newsletters about the intricacies of voting and elections in our state, so you can be that knowledgeable expert.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<h4>Russia Hoaxer A &ldquo;Champion For Democracy&rdquo;<\/h4>\n<p>Benson said during the interview that Elias is a &ldquo;champion for democracy.&rdquo; But the Democrat lawyer and activist was instrumental in engineering the false claims that Trump was working with Russian agents in 2016.<\/p>\n<p>While working for a law firm hired by Hillary Clinton&rsquo;s 2016 campaign, Elias <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/05\/15\/obama-appointed-judge-smacks-down-marc-elias-election-lawfare\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">commissioned<\/a> the infamous Christopher Steele dossier that accused former President Donald Trump of working with Russian interests. He then <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/05\/15\/obama-appointed-judge-smacks-down-marc-elias-election-lawfare\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">peddled<\/a> the dossier to bureaucrats and legacy media, which amplified the message to voters.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2018\/01\/18\/this-defense-of-fbis-handling-of-the-steele-dossier-is-one-of-the-weakest-yet\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">FBI<\/a> used this supposed <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/10\/12\/even-after-offering-1m-fbi-never-got-corroboration-of-russia-dossier-they-used-to-spy-on-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">evidence<\/a> to illegally spy on the Trump campaign, as The Federalist previously <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/08\/19\/kamala-campaign-hires-notorious-election-meddler-to-serve-as-legal-counsel\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a>. But later investigations from Special Counsels Robert Mueller and John Durham found <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/story\/2019\/03\/24\/breaking-news-barr-to-release-summary-of-mueller-report-1233771\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">no evidence<\/a> Trump <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/storage\/durhamreport.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">conspired<\/a> with Russian agents.<\/p>\n<p>The U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2021\/07\/08\/5th-circuit-keeps-sanctions-on-democrat-russia-hoax-lawyer-marc-elias\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">sanctioned<\/a> Elias in 2021 for a &ldquo;lack of candor&rdquo; and making a &ldquo;duplicative motion.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Elias recently <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/08\/19\/kamala-campaign-hires-notorious-election-meddler-to-serve-as-legal-counsel\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">joined<\/a> Vice President Kamala Harris&rsquo; campaign as legal counsel.<\/p>\n<p>Benson said Elias has a &ldquo;unique ability to see and predict, and be there in the fight when it happens.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>At the end of the interview, Elias called Benson a &ldquo;hero.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;re a hero as well,&rdquo; Benson said.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Logan Washburn is a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/lawsuit-clark-county-keeps-commercial-addresses-on-voter-rolls\/\" title=\"Lawsuit: Clark County Keeps Commercial Addresses On Voter Rolls\">staff writer covering election integrity<\/a>. He graduated from Hillsdale College, served as Christopher Rufo&#8217;s editorial assistant, and has bylines in The Wall Street Journal, The Tennessean, and The Daily Caller. Logan is originally from Central Oregon but now lives in rural Michigan.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson reaffirmed her warnings of potential legal consequences for election officials who are reluctant to certify election results during an interview with Democratic attorney Marc Elias, known for his role in the Trump-Russia collusion narrative. In the August 30 interview with Elias&#8217; organization, Democracy Docket, Benson reiterated her stance that counties must certify results without hesitation or face state legal action. She stated, &#8220;It will be much harder legally and practically for anyone to avoid certification,&#8221; emphasizing that if there are any delays or refusals related to the election outcomes, her office would respond immediately.<\/p>\n<p>Benson referenced Proposal 2 from 2022, which limited boards of canvassers&#8217; discretion in certifying results and made it a mandatory task. She stressed that those in positions responsible for certifying elections have an obligation to do so and warned of repercussions if they fail to fulfill this duty. Dismissing concerns about election integrity as mere &#8220;political pressure,&#8221; she asserted that attempts to challenge the legitimacy of elections would not succeed and would lead to legal ramifications.<\/p>\n<p>Benson accused individuals raising questions about election integrity of acting insincerely in order to undermine voter participation. She criticized efforts aimed at creating a perception of illegitimacy around elections as intimidation tactics against agencies involved in the electoral process.<\/p>\n<p>Despite these claims, Benson had previously sought input from left-leaning organizations on absentee ballot rules before the 2020 election. Her administration has also threatened local officials with legal action should they refuse certification and encouraged citizens to report instances of alleged misinformation regarding elections.<\/p>\n<p>In her discussion with Elias\u2014who has been linked to controversial claims regarding Trump&#8217;s connections with Russia\u2014Benson referred to him as a &#8220;champion for democracy.&#8221; The two expressed mutual admiration during their conversation, highlighting their shared commitment despite past controversies surrounding Elias&#8217;s involvement in promoting unverified allegations against Trump during his campaign<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":507,"featured_media":2337270,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Screenshot-2024-09-05-at-10.43.12%E2%80%AFAM-1024x552.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[34685,4601,35945],"class_list":["post-2337269","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist","tag-election-officials","tag-michigan","tag-secretary-of-state"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Screenshot-2024-09-05-at-10.43.12%E2%80%AFAM-1024x552.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2337269","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/507"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2337269"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2337269\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2337270"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2337269"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2337269"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2337269"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}