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New rules aim to prevent repeat of ‘Michigan Mirage’ on Election Day

admin — Mon, 21 Oct 2024 22:10:47 +0000

With about two weeks before Election Day, the state of Michigan reported there were more than 1,804,238 absentee ballots returned. So far, 2,506 ballots cast during early voting.

Scrutiny looms over election workers who know Michigan could possibly determine which presidential candidate will win the White House.

Many poll workers hope they won’t see a replay of the mayhem at the former TCF Center during the 2020 presidential election.

Outside the Detroit Department of Elections, a steady stream of voters arrived to drop off their absentee ballots or vote in person.

“I have several jobs. I’m in college,” Rico Menefee said. “It was convenient.”

The scene appeared calmer compared to the election nearly four years ago.

A contentious crowd demanded election workers stop tallying absentee ballots that favored President Joe Biden over former President Donald Trump.

Since then, some have referred to the moment as the Michigan mirage.

“It made it look like one party was ahead because both voters hadn’t been counted yet that were primarily from the other party,” said Matt Friedman, a spokesperson for Detroit Votes, a nonpartisan voter information campaign.

Following the “Stop the Steal” demonstrations, there are new changes this election cycle.

A prerequisite number of poll watchers and challengers are allowed in a specific area while ballots are being processed.

“These people had to undergo intense training for weeks, and the political parties know the rules,” Friedman said.

Essentially, no one should randomly show up to challenge election workers on Election Day.

Per state law, absentee votes can now be tabulated eight days before the election but not tallied until polls close on election night.

The takeaway is that voters can know the official results much sooner than they did in 2020.

At the state level, there are coordinated efforts to prepare election workers for worst-case scenarios.

“We’ve built robust partnerships with law enforcement and first responders holding scenario planning exercises with election officials – law enforcement and first responders – from all around our state,” said Secretary Jocelyn Benson.

Benson also doubled down to say there would be a police presence to ensure there were consequences if anything happened.

Meanwhile, voters hope tensions don’t escalate again.

“I never thought it would be like this,” Joyce Minon said.

However, others feel somewhat doubtful.

“I see it happening,” Walter Lockett said. “I mean, the environment is ripe for all types of chaos now.”

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Both The Tory Leadership Candidates Have Already Repelled More Than A Third Of Voters

admin — Wed, 09 Oct 2024 14:51:19 +0000

Both of the remaining Conservative leadership candidates have already managed to repel more than a third of voters over their divisive views, according to new findings.

Tory MPs just kicked James Cleverly out of the race to replace Rishi Sunak, meaning Kemi Badenoch and Robert Jenrick are battling it out to win over party members, who have the final say over who will be the next leader.

But new research commissioned by the Liberal Democrats and carried out by Savanta, found both of the remaining candidates actually repel the general public by the same amount.

According to the stats, more than three in 10 (35%) would be less likely to vote Tory if the party’s new leader was someone who has said they would vote for Donald Trump.

That will be disappointing news for Jenrick’s campaign, as he made headlines for saying he would support the Republican nominee if he were American in August.

Badenoch’s team will be equally frustrated, after 35% of the 2,003 respondents said they would be less likely to vote blue if their leader had called maternity pay “excessive”.

The shadow cabinet minister said exactly that at the Conservative conference earlier this month, although later issued a “clarification” saying she did not think it was excessive but “we must talk about the burden of excessive business regulation”.

Liberal Democrat cabinet office spokesperson Sarah Olney said: “Far from a serious leadership election, this group of chaotic Conservatives seem to be having the biggest unpopularity contest of the year.”

They continued: “Each failed minister standing for their party’s leadership is grossly out of touch and has a tainted record of taking voters for granted.

“Former Conservative voters abandoned the party in massive numbers at the last election. In so many places across the country, people are backing the Liberal Democrats who are speaking up for them on the issues that matter most like saving our NHS, tackling the cost of living crisis and stopping the sewage scandal.”

The survey – conducted before MPs surprised political pundits by voting out Cleverly – also said the shadow home secretary put off voters by an equal amount, with 35% saying they would be less likely to vote for the Conservatives if the leader had made a comment trivialising drink-spiking.

Cleverly, who was seen as the frontrunner after taking the most votes from Tory MPs in Tuesday’s ballot, was criticised for an “ironic” joke on that topic last December.

He also backed former PM Liz Truss, a fact which would deter 31% of voters, according to Savanta’s research.

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