Former state lawmakers work to encourage election confidence

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — With the presidential election nearing, there are a number of groups touting bipartisan membership working to reassure the public that elections are safe.

Perhaps one of the most remarkable displays of bipartisanship in recent political history was the cooperation between former President Gerald Ford and former President Jimmy Carter. The two, once bitter rivals, became friends, and that led to an ability to work together on more than two dozen initiatives.

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On Thursday, more than 40 years later, that cooperative spirit was on display. At the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids, a bipartisan group represented by two former members of the Michigan Legislature and supported by the Cater Foundation and the Gerald R. Ford Foundation introduced their new initiative, Michiganders for Civic Resilience.

Former state Senate President Pro Tempore Tonya Schuitmaker, a Republican from Lawton, talked about the purpose of the group:

“It’s a cross-partisan group that’s meant to reduce political violence no matter who’s elected for the next president, whether it’s Donald Trump Joe Biden or anyone else,” she said. “We focus on making sure that we don’t become the country of Haiti, that we improve civil discourse.”

Former Democratic Minority Leader in the House Christine Greig from Northville says it’s about making sure the accurate information is being heard.

“We really do hope to be those facilitators for bringing people across the political spectrum together to really remind ourselves of those shared values and dispel any myths that might be out there around our elections,” Greig said.

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The group heard from a number of individuals who have a vested interest in making election integrity a priority, including Kent County Clerk Lisa Posthumus Lyons.

“Having groups like this come along with us to help educate the public has been tremendous. This is not something we have really had in the past and so it is so helpful because I believe education, transparency and participation are really the key to make sure we are bolstering and sustain public trust in our elections,” she said.

So why are so many different groups like this coming forward now?

“I think Americans and Michiganders are just yearning for working together more,” Greig said. “We hear a lot of noise that’s going on right now at the local, state, and federal level and I think people are tired of it, frankly.”

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Schuitmaker said it’s a matter of getting mis- or disinformation out of the conversation.

“I think more and more people hear stuff but it’s important to get the education out there and to help clerks explain the message of why we do have safe and secure elections,” she said.

Michiganders for Civic Resilience is not the only group that is trying to bring Democrats and Republicans together to reassure the public about election integrity. “Keep our Republic” is another such group. Two former Michigan state representatives, one Democrat and one Republican, will be Political Reporter Rick Albin’s guests this weekend on “To The Point” to talk about why they, too, think the effort is so important.

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