Michigan
Experts say Michigan law 'has the back' of election workers and voters – WDET 101.9 FM
Experts say election workers and even voters face an almost unprecedented amount of tactics designed to intimidate them.
A recent poll from Bloomberg/Morning Consult found that roughly 50% of registered voters across a group of swing-states — including Michigan — aren’t confident the election and its aftermath will be free from violence.
But a new analysis finds both federal and Michigan law offer ample protections against bullying at the polls.
The Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law studied voters’ rights in political battleground states including Michigan.
Senior Counsel Eliza Sweren-Becker says anyone encountering trouble at the ballot box has many options available to defend themselves.
Listen: Experts say Michigan law ‘has the back’ of election workers and voters
The following interview was edited for clarity.
Eliza Sweren-Becker, Brennan Center for Justice: Federal law sets a floor preventing and prohibiting intimidation of voters and election officials. And those laws are quite strong. They’ve been on the books for a long time and they’ve been enforced for many, many years. The states can go above and beyond that floor to protect voters against intimidation. And they do, in fact, do that. The laws that are specific to Michigan are really complimentary and consistent with the existing federal laws. They’re enforced by different prosecutors as opposed to U.S. attorneys and employees of the U.S. Department of Justice. The laws in Michigan also go to some of the more specific election-related issues that may be occurring in Michigan. For example, Michigan law places a number of guardrails around voter challenges. And that’s something that federal law doesn’t get deeply in the weeds of. But Michigan law constrains them in a number of different ways.
Quinn Klinefelter, WDET News: There was a controversy at the central Detroit location where they counted votes in the last presidential election. Officials moved some observers out, they complained that they were getting in the way of counting votes, more or less. And those poll watchers claimed that they were being sent out of the area so that they would not see any fraud being committed. What do you suggest either the poll watchers or the workers do in such a situation?
ES: Not knowing the specifics, if those who were present at the vote-counting site were intimidating the election workers or disrupting the election processes, then the election officials and workers were appropriately removing folks. Election observers remained at that vote-counting site and nothing inappropriate happened as a result of those removals. The thing that was inappropriate was the disruptive and intimidating conduct.
QK: Are there any differences in Michigan’s voter intimidation laws as opposed to other states that surprise you in any way?
ES: The protections against intimidating election officials in Michigan, for example, are quite specific. And that’s an issue that we’ve seen come up in Michigan in recent years. And so, the law affords particular protections for election workers and officials explicitly in the Michigan code. And while it’s true that every election worker and poll worker is protected against intimidation, the level of specificity may differ in certain states. It’s a clear and strong protection for election officials and election workers in Michigan.
QK: That’s certainly become an issue in Michigan, as many election workers have talked about fear over their safety, not just during election day or when they are counting votes, but they oftentimes get threatening voicemails or other things directed at them even after a certain candidate has lost. Are there steps that can be taken either during the actual vote counting if intimidation occurs, or something else that election workers can do nowadays, compared to the past, if it happens before or after election day?
ES: If there are issues that are occurring at a polling place, for example, intimidation by a poll watcher or a challenger, poll workers in Michigan have the authority to remove that disruptive or intimidating poll watcher or challenger from the voting premises. So it’s not just a remedy after the fact. But if there’s instances of misconduct, as they’re occurring poll workers have the power to stop that in its tracks.
QK: If something develops that’s of concern on election day itself, a lot of times you’ll hear major political parties say, “We have attorneys at the ready.” And they say they’ll go to court to make sure that this or that is addressed in some way. For the various workers or voters, for that matter, who might be waiting to cast their vote or in the midst of doing so, what would you suggest they try to do? Especially if they don’t seem to have a group of attorneys at the ready. Are there particular ways that they should protest that they feel like they are being intimidated, or particular officials they should protest that to?
ES: Yes. If somebody is going to the courthouse to vindicate voting access and voting rights, typically the remedy they might get is, for example, an extension of polling place hours to ensure that voters have the opportunity to cast their ballots and any disruption that may have taken place doesn’t infringe on the number of hours that voters are entitled to be able to vote on election day. But in the moment of intimidating or disruptive conduct, the first thing I’d recommend is that a voter alert an election worker to that conduct. Those workers, again, have the authority to maintain order within the polling place. And voters can also call a nonpartisan election protection hotline if they are observing anything that they think is out of the ordinary, that is disruptive, that is intimidating. That is a way to pass along those concerns and complaints. And it could enable that person or set of voters to actually get representation if needed, because nonpartisan lawyers participate in that election protection hotline to make sure that every vote cast counts on election day. That number for election protection is (866) “OUR-VOTE.” There are strong existing state laws and federal laws — including state laws in Michigan — that protect voters from intimidation, election interference and disruption. And laws that likewise protect election officials and election workers. So while it’s something that we are watching very closely, voters and election officials should know that the law has their back.
Trusted, accurate, up-to-date.
WDET strives to make our journalism accessible to everyone. As a public media institution, we maintain our journalistic integrity through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today.
Donate today »
Fifth Third Bank said it has finalized its list of Michigan branch closures this summer, confirming that 75 locations will shut down in September as part of an ongoing effort to streamline its retail network.
Of the branches closing, 55 are former Comerica Bank locations, and 20 are existing Fifth Third branches.
The bank said most of the affected locations have another Fifth Third branch within one mile.
After the closures, Fifth Third said it will operate 227 branches across Michigan, including 116 in the five-county Metro Detroit area.
In a statement, Fifth Third said it is “building a stronger, more efficient branch network that supports customers today and positions the Bank for long-term sustainable growth in Michigan and across our expanded footprint.
The bank said it will continue serving Michigan through 227 financial centers across 39 counties and nearly 140 communities.
It added that while it is consolidating overlapping branches, most of the affected locations have another Fifth Third financial center within one mile.
After the customer conversion later this year, Fifth Third said Michigan customers will have access to approximately 42% more branches, while former Comerica customers will have access to about 60% more branches than before.
In southeast Michigan, Fifth Third’s post-conversion network is expected to be the largest in the five-county region of Livingston, Macomb, Oakland, Washtenaw, and Wayne counties, with 116 financial centers.
In Detroit, the bank said it will operate 19 locations, making it the largest banking network in the city following the conversion.
Copyright 2026 by WDIV ClickOnDetroit – All rights reserved.
President Trump not worried Iran will hurt GOP midterm chances
President Donald Trump said he isn’t worried about the 2026 midterm elections as effects of the war in Iran threaten to hurt Republican chances.
Gasoline prices fell nationwide and, in a few states, even dropped below $4 a gallon, which one petroleum analyst said was a sign of “growing optimism surrounding a potential U.S.-Iran agreement,” but even as fuel prices dropped, there are now new concerns.
In Michigan, gasoline dropped to $4.35 a gallon on Monday, June 1, according to AAA, while crude oil prices — the primary factor in fuel costs — started edging up, which could make it harder to reach a peace deal that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Crude oil prices rose after the United States and Iran each launched new strikes.
“Michigan drivers are getting some relief at the pump,” said Adrienne Woodland, a spokeswoman for AAA. “While the drop is welcome as we head into the busy summer travel season, fuel prices remain volatile and could shift again quickly.”
Higher fuel prices are causing some motorists to rethink how they shop for gas and are likely affecting other spending habits as well, such as cutting back on eating out.
One oil company executive also warned about how low oil inventories are getting.
Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said average gasoline prices declined in all 50 states over the last week, and were below $4 a gallon in 15 states, “offering motorists some of the most widespread relief seen in weeks.”
De Haan said much of the decline came from growing optimism for a deal.
Renewed attacks spark uncertainty
The average price of regular unleaded gasoline in Michigan dropped on Monday by 28 cents from a week ago, according to AAA. But it was still significantly higher than before the war in the Middle East.
Throughout the state, the most expensive gas price averages were in Traverse City, $4.48 a gallon; Ann Arbor, $4.43; and Benton Harbor, $4.42; the least were in Flint, $4.15; Lansing, $4.19; and Marquette, $4.22.
A year ago, regular unleaded gasoline in Michigan was $3.08 a gallon.
Diesel prices, $5.84 a gallon in Michigan, also fell.
“However,” De Haan said, “the coast is anything but clear. Oil prices edged higher Sunday evening as uncertainty surrounding a potential deal persisted and renewed Israeli attacks added another layer of geopolitical risk.”
He added that motorists “may continue to see some short-term relief,” they also may “soon experience another upward swing as retailers run out of room to lower prices further. Overall, any setback in negotiations could quickly reverse the recent decline in fuel prices.”
In addition to the rising oil prices, there are now indications that the price of gasoline could go higher again with increased demand during the summer travel season and more Mideast conflict.
Mitigating pain at the pump
Michigan motorists are now paying about $66 for a full 15-gallon tank of gasoline, with some even telling the Free Press during the past few weeks that to mitigate the pain at the pump, they’ve stopped filling up all the way.
Instead, they said they are making more frequent stops and shopping around.
Costco — the membership-only, warehouse club retail chain that tends to sell lower-priced gas — said during its recent quarterly earnings report that it is seeing record demand for gasoline.
It has been so overwhelmed, CNN reported, that tanker trucks are refilling stations multiple times a day.
On top of that, according to a Reuters report, several U.S. restaurant chains such as Wingstop and Domino’s have reported “weaker-than-expected sales growth” in the latest quarter, saying that high gas prices are leading their customers to cut back.
The report added that “analysts expect other restaurant chains also will show declining sales growth.”
And one oil company senior executive warned last week that global oil inventories are approaching record lows, which he said, potentially could cause oil prices — and then gasoline prices — to suddenly increase in two or three weeks.
ExxonMobil senior vice president Neil Chapman spoke at a conference on Thursday in New York, and, according to CNBC, cautioned that “we’re approaching unheard of inventory levels,” what he referred to as “really, really low levels.”
He added: “Once you get to that point, then you’ll see the price shoot up.”
Contact Frank Witsil: 313-222-5022 or fwitsil@freepress.com
Michigan’s 2027 class experienced a blow on Sunday when three-star Las Vegas (Nev.) Centennial safety Maxwell Miles announced he was flipping to Minnesota.
Miles’ decision to join the Wolverines took place in March during the program’s first commitment surge of the offseason. He took a visit during spring camp and quickly pledged.
Miles becomes the second safety this cycle this decommit from Michigan following Darrell Mattison flipping to Ole Miss a few weeks ago. Currently, U-M yields 14 commits in 2027 heading into June.
The news came once Miles took an official visit to Minnesota over the weekend, leading to him siding with the Golden Gophers. One of the schools that Miles picked Michigan over included Minnesota, along with Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, and San Diego State. Safeties coach Tyler Stockton was the leading figure in originally landing Miles.
“Me and Coach Stockton have a good relationship,” Miles told Maize n Brew. “He keeps it real with me and pushes me to be better, and I respect that a lot. Same with Coach (Kyle) Whittingham, it’s a strong relationship. He’s someone I can learn a lot from, and I appreciate how he approaches the game with his players.”
Two projected safeties make up Michigan’s 2027 class in four-star Tavares Harrington and three-star Charles Woodson Jr.
Rounding out the group are four-star tight end Colt Lumpris, four-star cornerback Darius Johnson, four-star defensive lineman Xavier Muhammad, four-star wide receiver Quentin Burrell, four-star running back Tyson Robinson, four-star edge rusher Jayce Brewer, four-star offensive lineman Jakari Lipsey, four-star edge rusher Recarder Kitchen, four-star quarterback Kamden Lopati, three-star linebacker Brayden Watson, three-star offensive lineman Sidney Rouleau, three-star running back Lundon Hampton and three-star offensive lineman Louis Esposito.
Rivals lists the class as the 10th-best in the FBS and fourth in the Big Ten.
-
News4 minutes agoVideo: California Prepares for Governor Primary Race
-
Health24 minutes agoWhat Really Happens When You Drink Alcohol During a Weight Loss Journey? Experts Explain
-
Lifestyle39 minutes agoThis is what you want to read this summer : It’s Been a Minute
-
Technology49 minutes agoPebblebee’s Halo can help track lost items and keep you safe, and it’s on sale for $50
-
World54 minutes agoHidden tunnel discovered in Tijuana may have supported cross-border trafficking operations
-
Politics1 hour agoJared Kushner’s overseas luxury resort project faces anti-corruption investigation amid violent protests
-
Health1 hour agoVeterans face surprising threat after cancer diagnosis, study reveals
-
Sports1 hour agoRick Adelman, architect of some of the NBA’s best offenses and Hall of Famer, dead at 79
