Coerced Certification Followed by Sworn Rescission (MI)

On November 17, 2020, Wayne County Board of Canvassers Republican members Monica Palmer and William Hartmann initially voted against certifying the county’s election results because 71% of Detroit’s Absentee Voter Counting Board (AVCB) precincts were documented as out of balance – meaning the number of ballots counted at those precincts did not reconcile with the number of voters who signed in. During the public comment period that followed, elected officials and university administrators conducted a coordinated public campaign of intimidation: State Representative Ibrahim Aiyash publicly identified Palmer’s home municipality and referenced her children on camera. Wayne State University Vice President Ned Staebler made similar statements. Statements by both officials were subsequently deleted from the publicly available recording of the meeting. Following these public statements, Palmer and Hartmann conditionally changed their votes to “yes” on the express, documented condition that a comprehensive audit would be conducted. Fellow canvasser Jonathon Kinloch personally promised the audit. Within hours, Secretary of State Benson publicly stated the audit promise was not binding on her office. The next day, Palmer and Hartmann each signed sworn affidavits rescinding their conditional certification votes.