(WWJ) Protesters tried to get into the vote tally room at downtown Detroit's TCF Center to stop the counting of absentee ballots in the presidential election.
Chants of "stop the vote" rang out outside the building, where votes were still being counted in crucial battleground Michigan, Wednesday afternoon.
WWJ's Vickie Thomas says a chaotic scene erupted as election officials told dozens of people that they could not enter, as the vote tally room was over capacity. Police officers posted had to block them from entering.
Officials said dozens of Democratic and Republican monitors were allowed inside to observe the process. However,
By 6 p.m., The Associated Press, CBS and multiple other media networks had called Michigan for Joe Biden.
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The Michigan Republican Party says it is monitoring "numerous irregularities" that occurred with the counting and reporting of votes throughout the state of Michigan, including in Detroit.
This includes yet unsbstaitianted allegations that thousands of ballots were dropped off at the Detroit counting board after 3 a.m., after volunteers were told that the final batch of votes was processed hours before.
“The irregularities reported this morning are incredibly troubling, especially given how close the election results are in Michigan.” said Michigan Republican Party Chairman Laura Cox, in a statement, “At this point, it is unclear whether or not these issues were caused by incompetence or corruption, but the fact that they exist is of great concern, and the Michigan Republican Party will spare no expense to expose the truth of what happened in yesterday’s election.”
In a statement, Attorney General Dana Nessel's Office denied any irregularities exist, saying counting has been going well.
She said: "Michigan’s elections have been conducted transparently, with access provided for both political parties and the public, and using a robust system of checks and balances to ensure that all ballots are counted fairly and accurately."
Donald Trump supporter Rob Cortis, who parked his "Trump Unity Bridge" truck outside the TCF center, complained on a loud speaker about the counting process.
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"They're not letting the challengers in," Cortis said. "The vote needs to be counted; it needs to be a fair vote. President Trump had enough ballots to win the election, alright?... But Democrat cities are the only ones say, well we don't have our votes counted."
Meanwhile, a lawsuit is seeking to put a stop to counting ballots in Michigan, until the Trump campaign is given access to counting locations where it can monitor the opening and counting process.
The latest Michigan numbers show a lead of 61,000 votes for Joe Biden over President Trump, with 99% of precincts across Michigan reporting.