Elections bureau recommends bouncing U.S. Senate candidate

Kate Holloway
·2 min read
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) — The Michigan Bureau of Elections has recommended motions for six of the seven remaining U.S. Senate candidates to proceed to the August primary ballot.

The recommendations from the Bureau of Elections to the Board of State Canvassers are based on the number of valid petition signatures within a random sampling of each candidate’s petition.

The Bureau has recommended motions for all four remaining Republican candidates: Justin Amash, Sherry O’Donnell, Sandy Pensler and Mike Rogers. It has also recommended motions for Democratic candidates Elissa Slotkin and Hill Harper.

The Bureau did not recommend a motion for Democratic candidate Nasser Beydoun, based on “invalid heading (failure to include valid address)” for 750 of the 750 petition signatures in the sample.

Staff-Memo-on-Random-Sampling-Results-of-US-Senate-PetitionsDownload

Harper had previously challenged Slotkin’s nominating petitions, alleging many of Slotkin’s petitions included altered city/township labelling on signatures by someone other than the voter; a failure to include the circulator information; and an alteration to the date.

FILE - Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., asks a question during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing at the Capitol in Washington, Nov. 15, 2022. The U.S. Department of Defense plans to install two more groundwater treatment systems at a former Michigan military base to control contamination from so-called forever chemicals, Slotkin's office announced Friday, Jan. 19, 2024.(AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)
FILE – Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., asks a question during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing at the Capitol in Washington, Nov. 15, 2022. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)

Harper had also filed a challenge to Beydoun’s nominating petitions, alleging that many of the petitions included invalid address; a signer not registered at the listed address; name and address not legible; and heading/circulator error.

Just in the last week, Republican candidates Mike Rogers, Sandy Pensler and Justin Amash, as well as former Republican candidate Peter Meijer (now withdrawn), were the subject of signature fraud claims.

Mike Rogers in December 2023.
Mike Rogers in December 2023.

The Michigan Democratic Party, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and voter Emily Judd submitted to the Board of State Canvassers a request for an investigation into the nominating petitions of Rogers, Pensler, Amash and Meijer, but didn’t file an official challenge.

All seven U.S. Senate candidates are vying to replace longtime U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow, who is set to retire.

The Board of Canvassers is scheduled to meet on May 31st to discuss the reports.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WLNS 6 News.