DETROIT – President Donald Trump in North Carolina made a suggestion to a reporter Wednesday that residents should test their state’s election system by voting by mail first and then try to vote in person, which is illegal.
“They will vote and then they are going to have to check their vote by going to the poll and voting that way because if it tabulates then they won’t be able to do that,” Trump told WECT-TV. “So, let them send it in and let them go vote. And if the system is as good as they say it is, then they obviously won’t be able to vote (at the poll). If it isn’t tabulated, they will be able to vote.”
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said on Thursday that if that’s done in Michigan, the person voting twice will be prosecuted.
A local county clerk, a township clerk and a Detroit city clerk each said trying to vote twice wouldn’t work because of the checks and balances in place.
Macomb County clerk Fred Miller said elections in Michigan are secure and there would be no way for someone to vote absentee and then go and vote in person. There would be an immediate red flag because of the state’s qualified voter file.
“That keeps record of everyone registration along with signature match matched up with voter ID and driver license database,” Miller said. “Multiple signature match is the bulwark of our ability to make sure that everyone is voting is truly eligible and true citizen voters.”
The city of Detroit’s clerk office said that once an absentee ballot is recognized, that voter cannot cast a ballot in person. They’d be stopped right then and there.
What happens if someone tries to vote twice?
“Let me be perfectly clear: voting twice is illegal, no matter who tells you to do it. The president’s idea is a great one for people looking to go to jail,” Nessel said. “My office will prosecute to the fullest extend of the law anyone who intentionally flouts our election laws.”
Miller said the more than 1,500 clerks in the state of Michigan take elections seriously. The confidence and security of elections is their top priority.
“If anyone is concerned, I welcome people to ask a clerk,” Miller said. “A clerk can explain the situation and the rules.”
More: Voting by mail in Michigan for 2020 General Election: What to know