The court fight over absentee voting in Michigan is not over. Republican leaders say they filed a notice Thursday that an appeal of the latest court ruling is on the way.
The formal notice from the Legislature’s GOP leaders says they will challenge a Michigan Court of Claims decision. They want the state Court of Appeals to say the judge stepped out of bounds when she ruled absentee ballots that arrive after Election Day must be counted. Michigan Court of Claims Judge Cynthia Stephens said ballots postmarked by November 2nd that arrive within 14 days must be tallied.
“This is an issue that will certainly have an issue on the November election,” said Amber McCann, spokeswoman for the Michigan Senate Republican majority.
Absentee voting has already started in Michigan, a state won by Republican President Donald Trump by a fraction of a percentage point.
State House Republicans also confirmed the notice had been filed.
Republican state Representative Ann Bollin (R-Brighton) is a former township clerk. She says the Stephens decision changed the rules late in the game.
“What this does is it creates confusion for our voters, and it creates a lot of unnecessary angst in a local clerk’s office.,” she said. “We have very sound election law in the state of Michigan, and we need to let the clerks do their job and administer the election.
”Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s office did not respond to a request for comment. But she has called for policies that would allow more absentee ballots to be counted.
The next step is for the case to be assigned to a Court of Appeals panel, which will decide whether to take the case. The controversy will likely wind up before the Michigan Supreme Court before it’s all settled.