The Republican National Committee and Donald Trump’s campaign have filed a lawsuit in federal court against Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson over their efforts to make voter registration more accessible.
The lawsuit, which claims that Whitmer’s designation of certain government offices as voter registration sites, has overstepped her authority and that her actions “undermine the integrity of elections.” Experts tell TPM that the lawsuit not only brings forth unfounded claims about the supposed integrity of Michigan elections, it will likely do the very thing that the RNC’s claims its legal challenge is supposedly guarding against: planting seeds of doubt in the election system.
While Republicans and far-right extremists have long held personal and political animus toward Whitmer as a progressive Democrat, the lawsuit is also part of a tactic the Trump campaign and the RNC have been deploying in other swing states for months, as Trump and his allies set themselves up to cry voter fraud in any state the former president might lose in the fall.
“I think that part of the aim of this lawsuit certainly may be political and certainly part of this lawsuit may have the effect of casting doubt on what Michigan officials are trying to do to make the voting process more accessible,” election integrity consultant David Levine told TPM.
More specifically, the legal challenge takes issue with a directive Whitmer issued last year, which, under the National Voter Registration Act, designated local Small Business Administration (SBA) offices as well as the Department of Veteran Affairs offices as voter registration sites. The complaint argues, however, that only the Legislature has the power to designate federal agencies as voter registration sites, and not the governor.
“The RNC and its members are concerned that Defendants’ failure to comply with Michigan statutes governing VRA designation undermines the integrity of elections by increasing the opportunity for individuals to register to vote even though they are ineligible to do so,” the RNC and Trump campaign argued in their complaint. “And by sowing confusion regarding whether the agencies purporting to offer assistance in registering voters are doing so in accordance with applicable law.”
Sarah Brannon, deputy director of the ACLU’s Voting Rights Project, told TPM that the designation of these new voter registration sites is merely a way to provide more opportunities for eligible citizens to register to vote, noting that any new registrants still have to go through the process of registering, which includes affirming under penalty of perjury their eligibility.
“All this is doing is potentially giving a new population of eligible individuals an opportunity to register to vote,” she said. “An increasing participation of eligible citizens cannot undermine the election.”
Not only is there no evidence in the lawsuit to suggest that having more voter registration sites undermines the integrity of elections, there is also, as Levine points out, no evidence for this claim even more broadly.
Additionally, Michigan election officials, like all election officials across the country, have safeguards in place to make sure that those who register to vote are in fact eligible to do so.
A spokesperson for the secretary of state’s office described the lawsuit as “divisive” and “partisan.”
“It is unfortunate that this divisive, partisan lawsuit was filed yesterday,” Benson spokesperson Angela Benander told TPM via email. “Making it easier for veterans and small business owners in Michigan to register to vote should not be controversial.”
“We will review this and any other litigation that comes our way but remain committed to ensuring that every Michigan voter has the tools and resources they need to participate in every election,” she said.
This isn’t the first time the RNC has filed a lawsuit that serves to perpetuate distrust in the election system in the state. In March of this year, the RNC filed a lawsuit against Benson arguing that in violation of the NVRA, the state is not maintaining accurate voter rolls.
But, as director of voting advocacy and partnerships at the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center Jonathan Diaz previously told TPM, that particular lawsuit, and others like it, are an attempt to create an “atmosphere of doubt and uncertainty.”
“There absolutely has been an effort by the RNC to divert resources from voter protection to a massive election integrity effort in which there are legal challenges being brought across the country, particularly in battleground states to challenge lots of different parts of the election process,” said Levine.
Well of COURSE they are.
They can’t win fairly, so they cheat. #voteblue
This seems to be the very definition of a frivolous lawsuit. Of course with the blatant corruption of the six christomullahs on our highest court the rnc doubtless figures what the hell, lets do it.
Support impoverished lawyers.
Donate to the Republican Party.
…contending the more people who vote, the more fraud you’re going to have because, you know… people. You know how they are.
Not truthful, like Republican politicians.
The gutless wonders are going after Gov. Whitmer as they commence their campaign to take her down. She scares them and we can expect her to be in their crosshairs, yes, I said crosshairs, from now until infinity. She would be a good president and they know it and they fear it.