The campaign behind a proposed state constitutional amendment has filed suit over a Michigan elections board decision that keeps it off the ballot.
The measure, backed by Americans for Citizen Voting Michigan, would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and photo ID to ensure a vote is counted.
Earlier this week, the Michigan Board of State Canvassers disagreed about whether to accept late proof that the campaign collected enough valid signatures to qualify for the ballot. A deadlock prevented the measure from advancing.
Now, Americans for Citizen Voting has asked the state Supreme Court to help it out.
“More than 700,000 Michiganders signed this petition. We have the signatures required to qualify, and we are asking the Michigan Supreme Court to ensure those voters are not silenced because the Board of State Canvassers failed to do its job,” campaign chair Paul Jacob said in a press release announcing the lawsuit.
This past spring, the campaign turned in far more signatures than necessary to qualify. But after reviewing a thousand-signature sample — and challenges to the validity of some of the signatures in that sample, nonpartisan elections staff found the campaign fell slightly short.
To convince the canvassing board otherwise, the campaign offered notarized affidavits from a handful of rejected signers to prove that the signatures should be counted, even if signatures didn’t exactly match state records.
At Monday’s meeting, board members deadlocked as to whether signatures on some of the new affidavits matched voter records either. Members agreed just enough of them matched to theoretically push campaign over the needed signature threshold.
However, the affidavits that would have made the difference weren’t turned in until after the meeting had started. The board generally has a rule that all public materials must be submitted at least 48 hours beforehand.
The board’s two Democratic members argued the rule should be strictly followed. The board’s two Republican members wanted to accept the affidavits in this case.
How the Michigan Supreme Court views the 48-hour rule could be key to deciding the case. The lawsuit argues the board’s duty to certify petitions trumps its authority to set procedural rules for itself.
The complaint is also arguing the rejected affidavits should be accepted as well.
The lawsuit is asking for a decision by September 1. A deadline for finalizing the November ballot is coming up soon.
Meanwhile, the issue is also drawing scrutiny from state lawmakers. On Wednesday, the Michigan House of Representatives created a new select committee to look into the matter.
