Michigan's Voter Roll Maintenance Is Inadequate Despite Court Approval
Source: M.D. Kittle. "Michigan's Dirty And Dead-Ridden Voter Rolls Escape Scrutiny." March 4, 2026. thefederalist.com
The Gist
The author argues that Michigan's top election official isn't doing enough to clean dead people off voter registration lists, even though courts said her efforts were good enough. He points to evidence of thousands of dead people still registered and her poor track record in court cases.
Conclusion
Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson is failing to adequately maintain voter rolls by removing deceased registrants, despite court rulings that found her efforts 'reasonable'
Premises
- PILF identified almost 26,000 likely deceased individuals still registered to vote in Michigan, with nearly 4,000 dead for at least 20 years
- PILF provided specific evidence to Benson's office including obituaries and gravestone photos, yet these registrants remained on the rolls
- Benson has been sued approximately 70 times, more than Michigan's previous four secretaries of state combined
- Court rulings have found Benson violated election laws regarding poll challengers and signature verification guidance
- The Fair Election Fund gave Benson a 'D' grade for election integrity, citing multiple failures including poor voter registration list maintenance
- Benson has a conflict of interest as both chief election officer and gubernatorial candidate
- The DOJ sued Benson for failing to provide unredacted voter registration records as required by federal law
Assumptions
- The presence of deceased individuals on voter rolls indicates inadequate maintenance regardless of court findings
- A high number of lawsuits against an election official indicates poor performance
- Third-party watchdog assessments provide reliable measures of election administration quality
- Federal courts' definition of 'reasonable efforts' may be insufficient for proper election integrity