Republican Anthony Forlini, who serves as Macomb County Clerk, presented himself as the experienced choice who would restore trust in secure elections during a debate Thursday against his Democratic opponent, Garlin Gilchrist.
Gilchrist, Michigan’s current lieutenant governor, said he has delivered for all Michiganders regardless of party and would protect voting rights and increase campaign-finance transparency.
The candidates squared off over administrative experience, disclosure of political donations, and improving wait times and appointment systems for drivers. But the most contentious topic of the night was which candidate was better equipped to uphold the integrity of elections.
Gilchrist accused Forlini of having “placated election deniers,” while Forlini said Gilchrist was ignoring genuine concerns about voting integrity.
Gilchrist said that Forlini, as Macomb clerk, had hired “a January 6 protester to be the poll worker recruiter and clerk trainer.” Forlini, Gilchrist said, would “create the kind of conspiracies that could lead to our election workers, our local township clerks, also having more pressure.”
Forlini said the employee Gilchrist referenced “is very, very vocal and not something that I necessarily aspire to” but that her hire was part of his office employing people with “diversity of opinion.”
Forlini said it was important to address concerns about election security. He noted that Gilchrist had questioned the results of the 2017 election for Detroit city clerk, a race that Gilchrist lost.
“I'm the only one up here that is not an election denier,” Forlini said.
Gilchrist sought a partial recount in the 2017 race, which found errors with the way ballots were processed and stored but confirmed Gilchrist’s loss. After the recount, Gilchrist conceded the election.
Gilchrist “was rightfully upset with his election,” Forlini said. "He felt disenfranchised. And it's people like that that I'm here for. I'm here for people across the board so that they can get fair elections.”
Looming over the debate was President Donald Trump’s denial of his 2020 loss to Joe Biden.
Forlini said he had “never denied the election” and offered that “Joe Biden was certified as president and served four years as president … and that’s all that’s required to know.”
Forlini said the election denialism criticized by Gilchrist was “not fed by me,” and that Gilchrist “sounds like he wants to debate somebody else.”
Both candidates argued their background made them the right fit for the role.
Forlini said that his experience as a county elections administrator made him uniquely qualified to manage statewide elections.
“You can't get into this role with training wheels,” Forlini said. “You need to know how to take action — action that I've already taken in Macomb County.”
Gilchrist emphasized that his background in software engineering would help him fix slow and broken systems and protect voter data, which he said is under threat from the Trump administration.
The debate was held at the University of Michigan’s Ford School of Public Policy and moderated by journalists from Bridge Michigan and Gongwer News Service.
