The Michigan Board of State Canvassers unanimously certified statewide election results on Monday, and the Republican chairman slammed conspiracy theorists who baselessly claimed widespread fraud.
The bipartisan board voted 4-0 in favor of certification, delivering a final blow to the far right’s last-ditch efforts to overturn the election.
The certification seals the fate of an election that delivered a second term to Democrats Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Attorney General Dana Nessel, and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson. Democrats also gained control of the state House and Senate for the first time in Michigan in nearly 40 years.
At one point during the meeting, police removed one member of the audience for shouting at canvassers.
Republican Tony Daunt, chairman of the Board of State Canvassers, criticized the politicians who continue to erode confidence in the election by peddling unfounded conspiracy theories. Daunt said the conspiracies are “unfortunately fed by candidates and party officials on both sides of the aisle who feed into this nonsense, who make these claims that fire everybody up because it’s a short-term gain for them, and that’s dangerous to our system.”
“We need more responsible leadership on both sides of the aisle related to these issues because it is critical that people accept the results of an election when it’s all is said and done,” Daunt said. “It’s critical that they have faith in the ability to accept the results and having that is not possible...
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