The reporting of the primary’s outcomes from Detroit and the Wayne and Macomb counties, displayed perhaps a disappointing performance compared to the rest of the state. This event, unfortunately, sowed seeds of concern that the same pattern would repeat during the general election on Nov. 5, providing unnecessary fuel for conjecture about the integrity of our elections. Efforts appeared to be in vain as the recent legislation by state lawmakers, allowing the early counting of absentee ballots even up to a week before the polls officially close on election day, didn’t seem to accelerate the process in these areas.
Despite Wayne, Macomb, and notably Detroit, trailing behind in the timeline of definitive election results, it wasn’t until 1:15 a.m. on Wednesday that Detroit shared some vote totals. The clerk’s elections website at this point glaringly showed 0% for ‘precincts fully reporting,’ with the last update of the vote totals dating back to 10:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
At the same time mark of 1:15 a.m., Wayne County, which encapsulates Detroit, could only boast of vote totals from a mere 2% of its precincts. Simultaneously, Macomb County was able to display results from just 39% of its precincts. Disappointingly, these percentages draw a stark contrast with the likes of Oakland County, Kent County, and Genesee County, which reported 94%, 85%, and 78% of their precinct’s results, respectively; a much more impressive feat.
Jonathan Kinloch, a Wayne County Commissioner and former member of the county’s board of canvassers raised concerns about the sluggish process. ‘The whole world’s going to be watching us in November,’ Kinloch asserted, hinting at the fear of a repeat performance. This concern is indeed justified, given the spotlight that was colorfully cast on Michigan after the 2016 elections where Donald Trump triumphed over Hilary Clinton by about 11,000 votes.
The delayed report of vote totals was a significant cause of uncertainty, especially in Detroit. The aftermath of the election was shrouded in doubt until the day after the election. Trump cleverly showcased this delay as further evidence of faulty processes when he lost to Joe Biden in the 2020 elections with a vote margin exceeding 150,000, claiming the election was rigged.
Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey’s top aide, Daniel Baxter, revealed at 2:30 a.m. Wednesday two contributing factors to the delay: a surprise surge in absentee ballots arriving on Election Day and a technical hiccup. ‘Tuesday was an unusual day for a primary,’ shared Baxter, ‘Nearly 10,000 voters returned their (absentee) ballots that day.’ A figure that astonishingly, exceeded almost twofold the typical volume that arrive on Election Day. As it turned out, the Detroit vote totals did not find their way to the public’s view until approximately 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday.
In the face of such challenges, Baxter remained astonishingly nonchalant, stating that the Detroit clerk planned to rope in more staff to speed up results in November. ‘We’re not overly concerned at all,’ he declared, making a bold claim to a much faster report of results by Detroit in the forthcoming general elections.
Wayne County Clerk Cathy Garrett’s spokesperson, Dorian Tyus, addressed the delay as partly a technical glitch that interfered with relaying the election results from local municipalities to the clerk’s website. According to Tyus, there was a problem with a firewall, which restricted municipalities from transmitting the data by electronic means, hence the last-minute run to the clerk’s office in downtown Detroit to deliver their results.
Tyus also mentioned doing an audit to cope with the unprecedented situation, although the duration remained uncertain. Such a move is essentially to prevent a repeat in the coming electoral season. ‘We do have backup processes in place, which (were) executed yesterday, to be able to ensure that the results are still coming in and they’re accurate and complete,’ he added. Yet, the efficiency of delivery was lackluster due to their inability to send the results via the internet.
Macomb County Clerk, Anthony Forlini, offered his voice on the matter. He suggested that vote results were not relayed electronically due to uncertified tabulator modems, meaning data needed to be physically transported via computer sticks.
Forlini had a more optimistic lens on the matter, stating that the first set of results started trickling in around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday. He even went as far as to commend his team for their efforts and suggested that their performance was fairly timely. ‘We’re better this time than we were last time,’ Forlini said, while pointing out that his county was at 100% reports before Oakland County.
Angela Benander, a spokeswoman for Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, indirectly defended Detroit and Wayne County: ‘We believe the city and the county followed proper procedures in handling the unfortunate logistical challenges on Tuesday that prevented unofficial results from being reported more quickly. Clerks and their teams plan for these challenges, put backup systems in place, and quickly shift to those backup systems when necessary.’ This statement seems more like a delicate way of handling these blunders.
Former Wayne County elections official, Jonathan Kinloch, with a much more relaxed posture, felt no concern about the seemingly poor show by Detroit and Wayne county clerks during the primaries. He was forgiving, attributing the delay in vote reporting to the introduction of new technology and equipment. ‘This was a great test run,’ Kinloch said. ‘Hopefully, they took a lot of notes.’
However, with all these excuses and promises of improvement, only time will tell if Detroit and the Wayne and Macomb counties will actually step up their game in the forthcoming general elections. One thing is clear: the spotlight will be on, and scrutiny tighter than ever. The people of Michigan certainly deserve better than these inconveniences that evidently could, and should have been avoided.
Detroit’s Disappointed Display as Late Counting Reveals Democrat Inefficiency appeared first on Real News Now.
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