(WWJ) Do not attempt to vote twice in the presidential election this November.
"Thanks, Captain Obvious," some may say, but officials in Michigan felt it was necessary to remind voters of the law, following remarks by President Donald Trump.
Attorney General Dana Nessel and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson responded Thursday Trump’s suggestion that voters attempt to cast two ballots — one by mail and another in person — to stress-test election systems.
Nessel and Benson want to remind Michiganders that intentionally voting twice is illegal and will be prosecuted. “Let me be perfectly clear: voting twice is illegal, no matter who tells you do to it. The president’s idea is a great one for people looking to go to jail,” said Nessel. “My office will prosecute to the fullest extend of the law anyone who intentionally flouts our election laws.”
Intentionally voting twice would be considered voted fraud, Nessel said. Voter fraud is typically prosecuted as a felony in Michigan, and bipartisan legislation introduced in the state legislature this summer would codify it as a felony offense. “Our election system has been stress-tested by three successful elections already this year and in all of them proven that it is absolutely safe and secure,” said Benson. “We have protections in place to ensure election officials track and verify every ballot they send and receive and in every instance we ensure that each person gets only one vote.”
Speaking to a crowd in North Carolina, the president suggested that voters send in their mail-in ballots, then go to the polls on Election Day to try to see if election workers will allow them to vote again.
"Send it in early, then go and vote," Trump said. "Then if they tabulate it very late, which they shouldn't be doing, they'll see you voted, and so it won't count."
Trump has long suggested that mail-in balloting is inherently corrupt, even as his campaign urges his supporters to vote from home.
While absentee voting is expected to be popular nationwide this November due to COVID-19, Michigan voters were well-prepared for the practice prior to the pandemic. Under a state law approved in 2018, any registered voter in Michigan is entitled to vote by mail, without providing a reason.