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Michigan’s top two Republican legislators met with President Donald Trump at the White House Friday, and came away with their minds unchanged about the state’s election results.
House Speaker Lee Chatfield and Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey released a joint statement saying, “We have not yet been made aware of any information that would change the outcome of the election in Michigan and as legislative leaders, we will follow the law and follow the normal process regarding Michigan’s electors, just as we have said throughout this election.”
Chatfield and Shirkey say they focused the meeting on the need for additional federal support for the state, as it continues to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.
President Donald Trump had a different take on the meeting, tweeting that “We will show massive and unprecedented fraud!”
On Friday, three former state governors called on the Michigan Board of Canvassers to certify the statewide election result when it meets today. They represent the full political spectrum – Jennifer Granholm is a Democrat who supported Joe Biden, John Engler is a Republican who supported Trump, and Rick Snyder is a Republican who broke with his party to support Biden.
State and national Republican Party leaders, though, doubled down on the president’s call for intervention. In a joint letter addressed directly to the Board of Canvassers, and released publicly on Saturday, state chair Laura Cox and national chair Ronna Romney McDaniel called on board members to delay certification until an audit of the results can be performed.
Michigan law prohibits audits until 30 days after the votes are certified.
Failure of the board to certify the results would push the issue into the state court system.
They did back off on the language, however – using the terms “numerical anomalies and credible reports of procedural irregularities,” and no longer echoing the president’s claims of widespread fraud.
Wayne County has reported a discrepancy of around 450 votes out of approximately 878,000 votes cast – a ratio of .0005 percent. Results certified by all Michigan counties show Biden leading Trump by 154,000 votes.
