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Monday is the day the Michigan State Council of Solicitors is due to meet to certify these results. The certification of election results by the board is what triggers the selection of voters, which is sent to the electoral college.
What advice can and can not do
“It’s a mandatory requirement,” said John Pirich, former Michigan state assistant attorney general and current Michigan State University law professor, explaining the laws that govern the council.
“The Michigan Supreme Court has said very clearly that ‘shall’ means ‘shall’. It is mandatory. It is ministerial. They have no choice, ”said Mark Brewer, Michigan’s longest-serving Democratic Party chairman and lawyer at Goodman Acker.
“It’s clear. It says after certification, and it shouldn’t be used for recounts or certification issues,” Pirich said, referring to the law.
“I think with all of the potential issues, if any of them are true, an audit is appropriate,” said Norman Shinkle. CNN has contacted Shinkle several times for comment. CNN also did not receive responses from other board members.
The board cannot try to certify part of the results for the state and not all of it, as the Republican chairman of the Wayne County Solicitors Council suggested at their certification meeting, which received a lot of repulsion. at the time.
The only reason the board would be able to postpone certification, hypothetically, would be if it did not have all the results or information it needed to certify. But given that all counties have certified their results, there is no reason for the board to delay certification after its Monday meeting.
“Historically, the board has always certified unanimously on this day,” Brewer said.
What happens in the event of a 2-2 blockage?
If the board finds itself in a 2-2 partisan deadlock, like what initially happened with the Wayne County Solicitors Council on Tuesday, two parallel processes can occur.
Steve Liedel, chief legal adviser to former governor Jennifer Granholm, said this kind of stalemate has happened before, but mostly over proposed votes.
The first way to force certification is through the courts. If the board does not certify by November 23, the Michigan Court of Appeals will order the board to certify. Liedel said the court had started contempt proceedings in the past for board members who failed to certify and board members refusing to certify could be charged with misdemeanor or willful neglect of their duties . If the issue is not resolved by the Court of Appeals, it would be referred to the Michigan Supreme Court, but Michigan election lawyers agreed on Friday that it is unlikely to reach that level.
When asked if Whitmer was ready to step in if board members refused to certify, his press secretary Tiffany Brown told CNN: “We’re not at this point and hope individuals will do the right thing and respect the will of the voters. “
If a board member does not show up, the board can still act as long as one member from each party is present. If there is more than one vacant post, the governor fills the vacant post.
Can the legislature get involved and appoint its own constituents?
The short answer, according to Michigan election experts, is no.
Even though the State Board of Canvassers refuses to certify the results and the matter goes to court and Whitmer can intervene, Michigan election lawyers have explained that the legislature cannot attempt to appoint its own constituents.
“You can look at the entire Michigan Election Code written by the legislature and signed by governors of both parties. There is no role for the legislature in this process,” Brewer said.
“Michigan has a pretty strong separation of powers clause. And the appointment of Electoral College members doesn’t legislate, it’s not a law. And there’s nothing in the Michigan Constitution that would allow the legislature to do that, ”Liedel said.
Liedel added that the only thing lawmakers could do in this regard is try to pass a bill, which would change the law, but it would require the governor’s signature.
Both parties adopted their voters lists at their respective fall conventions.
Can certification votes to be canceled?
In Wayne County, after the board certified its results, the two Republican board members submitted affidavits attempting to recall their votes. Since the affidavits were submitted after the county level certification deadline, there was no way to recall their votes.
The same is true at the state level. Once the board has certified the results, the meeting is adjourned. To recall the votes, the council is expected to call another meeting, but Michigan election experts said on Friday that would not happen.
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