LANSING, Mich.—The Michigan Board of State Canvassers has approved petition language for a citizens’ initiative that, its supporters say, will help stamp out election fraud in this important swing state.
The initiative requires all voters to present a valid Michigan driver’s license, passport, or state ID card when voting in person. A signed affidavit by a person not having a photo ID would no longer suffice.
It also forbids governmental units from mass-mailing unsolicited absentee ballot applications and prohibits the funding of any portion of the election process by nongovernmental entities.
“We are happy the petition drive is off and rolling,” said Jamie Roe, a spokesperson for SecureMIVote, the grassroots organization that filed the language.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, has repeatedly vowed to veto any measure she believes would restrict the voting rights of Michigan residents.
But the SecureMIVote proposal isn’t a bill, nor does it originate in the state legislature; it’s voter-initiated legislation.
If the petition drive collects more than 340,000 valid signatures within six months, under Michigan law, the Republican-controlled state legislature could vote to accept the proposal as the will of the people and it would become law, or it could be placed on the ballot as a referendum in the next general election.
A recent public opinion poll commissioned by the Greater Detroit Chamber of Commerce showed that 79.7 percent of 600 Michigan registered voters surveyed support requiring a government-issued photo ID in order to vote.
“Either way, Michigan law says our proposal would not be subject to a veto by the governor,” Roe said.
Just hours after the board announced its decision to approve the language of the SecureMIVote initiative, Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist, also a Democrat, issued a blistering statement urging Michiganders to join the governor’s office in opposing the plan, which he labeled “anti-democracy and anti-American.”
“Every Michigan voter … should be offended and angered by this deceitful effort to change the rules just because some people did not like the results of the 2020 election,” Gilchrist said.
By Steven Kovac
