A Wayne County judge denied a request to audit the county’s election results before Michigan’s electors cast their vote for Joe Biden next week, citing an already-planned audit by the Secretary of State.
Wayne County Judge Timothy Kenny said a group of voters who sued Detroit-area election officials are entitled to seek an audit, but not one supervised by county officials. The Secretary of State committed to performing a risk-limiting audit, and Kenny said plaintiffs could pursue a case again in the Court of Claims if the state does not follow through.
“This court finds no legal authority that permits the Wayne County Clerk to conduct an audit of Wayne County election results or that separates the audit from the oversight of the Secretary of State,” Kenny wrote in his order. “Since the Secretary of State has made a public commitment to do an audit of the Wayne County vote, plaintiff’s motion for the audit is premature.”
The Wayne County Board of Canvassers certified votes in its jurisdiction on Nov. 17. The Board of State Canvassers followed suit on Nov. 23.
Michigan’s certified results show Biden won Michigan by 154,000 votes. The state’s 16 electors are scheduled to cast their votes for Biden on Dec. 14.
Plaintiffs Cheryl Costantino and Edward McCall initially filed the lawsuit seeking to discredit Detroit’s election results with discredited allegations of fraud. Their requests for an injunction, a protective order and an independent audit were previously rejected in Wayne County Circuit Court, the Michigan Court of Appeals and the Michigan Supreme Court.
Defendants named in the lawsuit include the city of Detroit, clerks for Detroit and Wayne County and the Wayne County Board of Canvassers.
During a hearing last week, lawyers representing the defense said plaintiffs want “another bite at the apple” to provide President Donald Trump with a legal victory as he challenges the legitimacy of the 2020 election.
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