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Federal judge halts Michigan election recount
By Tresa Baldas, Kathleen Gray and Frank Witsil, Detroit Free Press 9:04 p.m. EST December 7, 2016
After two days of ballot counting, conflicting court decisions and legal wranglings by frustrated Republican lawyers, a federal judge on Wednesday halted the hand recount of 4.8 million ballots cast for president in Michigan, concluding there's no real evidence that foul play occurred and there's no valid reason to continue the recount.
In his eight-page opinion, U.S. District Judge Mark Goldsmith said "there is no basis" for him to ignore a state court ruling that said the recount should never had started. He was referring to the Michigan Court of Appeals' 3-0 ruling, which said that Green Party Candidate Jill Stein, who requested the recount, never had a shot at winning with her fourth place finish and 1% of the vote, and therefore was not an aggrieved candidate.
Goldsmith also upheld arguments made repeatedly by the Michigan Republican Party: that there was never any evidence that hacking or fraud occurred at the polls in Michigan.
"To date, plaintiffs have not presented evidence of tampering or mistake. Instead, they present speculative claims going to the vulnerability of the voting machinery -- but not actual injury," Goldsmith wrote, adding the potential for fraud is not enough to continue to allow the recount to proceed.
The Republican Party also apparently convinced Goldsmith that the recount would have cost taxpayers too much money -- $5 million by one count.
"It is at least arguable that the Michigan Legislature intended to confine costly and disruptive recounts to cases where a losing candidate stood a reasonable chance of changing the outcome of the election," Goldsmith wrote.
Goldsmith did, however, note that Stein raised "serious" issues.
"The vulnerability of our system of voting poses the threat of a potentially devastating attack on the integrity of our election system," Goldsmith wrote, stressing that a potential threat alone does not justify a recount. Stein's lawyers vowed an appeal.
Michigan Republican Party Chairman Ronna Romney McDaniel praised the ruling as a "victory for the taxpayers and voters of Michigan who can be assured that their vote will count when the state’s electors meet on December 19."
"The courts have affirmed the stance the campaign has maintained from day one: Jill Stein, who received only 1.07% of the vote in Michigan, is not legally entitled to hijack the will of voters and drag them into an arduous and expensive publicity stunt," McDaniel said.
Stein's lawyers, meanwhile, have an appeal pending before the Michigan Supreme Court.
In a hearing before Goldsmith, Stein's lawyers argued Wednesday that the recount must continue, stressing that the recount thus far has shown numerous voting problems across the state, particularly in Detroit, where more than half of the precincts' ballots cannot be recounted due to problems that have not been disclosed. They also argued that Stein is an aggrieved party if she participated in an election that was plagued with mistakes or fraud -- even if she didn't stand to win. And the voters of Michigan have a right to know that, too, they said.
"There is no way of knowing whether fraud occurred without conducting the recount," Stein's attorney, Hayley Horowitz, told Goldsmith during the hearing, arguing it is "way too early" to know if fraud was an issue.
After the hearing, Stein told the Free Press that so far, the recount appears to be exposing problems with Michigan's election process, particularly in low-income, minority communities.
"It is revealing some really troubling aspects of how elections are run here," Horowitz said of the recount. "We think that's part of the reason the recount should continue -- to continue revealing those problems so that the people of Michigan can see how their election operates."
The Michigan Republican Party and Attorney General's office repeatedly argued to Goldsmith that the recount was not warranted. Both stressed that a state appellate court had already decided the issue.
"Her entire purpose is to audit the Michigan system," John Bursh, of the Michigan Attorney General's office, said of Stein in court.
"Don't become the first federal court in the country to order a recount ... for a candidate who lost by 2 million votes," Bursh said.
Attorney Gary Gordon, who represents the Michigan Republican Party, also urged Goldsmith to stop the recount.
"This candidate is not aggrieved in any sense of the word," Gordon said of Stein, stressing: "It's very unlikely that 2 million mistakes have been made."
Meanwhile, the Michigan Board of State Canvassers met in Lansing today.
Last Friday, the board deadlocked 2-2 on Trump's objection to Stein's request for a recount, which allowed the hand recount to move forward. But the Michigan Court of Appeals said the board erred in its decision. Goldsmith upheld that finding.
The board of state canvassers has previously noted that Michigan's electors already have been certified and their names have been sent to Washington.
In addition to Michigan, Stein is also seeking recounts in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania — battleground states that have voted Democratic in recent elections but shifted to Republican in 2016. If recounts resulted in all three states flipping to Democrat Hillary Clinton from Trump, Clinton would win the presidency.
Tresa Baldas can be reached at tbaldas@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @Tbaldas.
By Tresa Baldas, Kathleen Gray and Frank Witsil, Detroit Free Press 9:04 p.m. EST December 7, 2016
After two days of ballot counting, conflicting court decisions and legal wranglings by frustrated Republican lawyers, a federal judge on Wednesday halted the hand recount of 4.8 million ballots cast for president in Michigan, concluding there's no real evidence that foul play occurred and there's no valid reason to continue the recount.
In his eight-page opinion, U.S. District Judge Mark Goldsmith said "there is no basis" for him to ignore a state court ruling that said the recount should never had started. He was referring to the Michigan Court of Appeals' 3-0 ruling, which said that Green Party Candidate Jill Stein, who requested the recount, never had a shot at winning with her fourth place finish and 1% of the vote, and therefore was not an aggrieved candidate.
Goldsmith also upheld arguments made repeatedly by the Michigan Republican Party: that there was never any evidence that hacking or fraud occurred at the polls in Michigan.
"To date, plaintiffs have not presented evidence of tampering or mistake. Instead, they present speculative claims going to the vulnerability of the voting machinery -- but not actual injury," Goldsmith wrote, adding the potential for fraud is not enough to continue to allow the recount to proceed.
The Republican Party also apparently convinced Goldsmith that the recount would have cost taxpayers too much money -- $5 million by one count.
"It is at least arguable that the Michigan Legislature intended to confine costly and disruptive recounts to cases where a losing candidate stood a reasonable chance of changing the outcome of the election," Goldsmith wrote.
Goldsmith did, however, note that Stein raised "serious" issues.
"The vulnerability of our system of voting poses the threat of a potentially devastating attack on the integrity of our election system," Goldsmith wrote, stressing that a potential threat alone does not justify a recount. Stein's lawyers vowed an appeal.
Michigan Republican Party Chairman Ronna Romney McDaniel praised the ruling as a "victory for the taxpayers and voters of Michigan who can be assured that their vote will count when the state’s electors meet on December 19."
"The courts have affirmed the stance the campaign has maintained from day one: Jill Stein, who received only 1.07% of the vote in Michigan, is not legally entitled to hijack the will of voters and drag them into an arduous and expensive publicity stunt," McDaniel said.
Stein's lawyers, meanwhile, have an appeal pending before the Michigan Supreme Court.
In a hearing before Goldsmith, Stein's lawyers argued Wednesday that the recount must continue, stressing that the recount thus far has shown numerous voting problems across the state, particularly in Detroit, where more than half of the precincts' ballots cannot be recounted due to problems that have not been disclosed. They also argued that Stein is an aggrieved party if she participated in an election that was plagued with mistakes or fraud -- even if she didn't stand to win. And the voters of Michigan have a right to know that, too, they said.
"There is no way of knowing whether fraud occurred without conducting the recount," Stein's attorney, Hayley Horowitz, told Goldsmith during the hearing, arguing it is "way too early" to know if fraud was an issue.
After the hearing, Stein told the Free Press that so far, the recount appears to be exposing problems with Michigan's election process, particularly in low-income, minority communities.
"It is revealing some really troubling aspects of how elections are run here," Horowitz said of the recount. "We think that's part of the reason the recount should continue -- to continue revealing those problems so that the people of Michigan can see how their election operates."
The Michigan Republican Party and Attorney General's office repeatedly argued to Goldsmith that the recount was not warranted. Both stressed that a state appellate court had already decided the issue.
"Her entire purpose is to audit the Michigan system," John Bursh, of the Michigan Attorney General's office, said of Stein in court.
"Don't become the first federal court in the country to order a recount ... for a candidate who lost by 2 million votes," Bursh said.
Attorney Gary Gordon, who represents the Michigan Republican Party, also urged Goldsmith to stop the recount.
"This candidate is not aggrieved in any sense of the word," Gordon said of Stein, stressing: "It's very unlikely that 2 million mistakes have been made."
Meanwhile, the Michigan Board of State Canvassers met in Lansing today.
Last Friday, the board deadlocked 2-2 on Trump's objection to Stein's request for a recount, which allowed the hand recount to move forward. But the Michigan Court of Appeals said the board erred in its decision. Goldsmith upheld that finding.
The board of state canvassers has previously noted that Michigan's electors already have been certified and their names have been sent to Washington.
In addition to Michigan, Stein is also seeking recounts in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania — battleground states that have voted Democratic in recent elections but shifted to Republican in 2016. If recounts resulted in all three states flipping to Democrat Hillary Clinton from Trump, Clinton would win the presidency.
Tresa Baldas can be reached at tbaldas@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @Tbaldas.
