LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – A federal judge from Michigan’s Western District last Friday dismissed a lawsuit claiming that Michigan was inadequately addressing the removal of deceased voters from its registration records. The judge, Jane Beckering, asserted that Michigan has an effective and ongoing process for eliminating deceased voters from its rolls, and thus, the lawsuit lacked merit.

Judge Beckering emphasized that the state employs a comprehensive approach to identify and remove deceased voters, surpassing the requirements set by federal election law.

MORE NEWS: Bedrock, GM Propose $250M in Taxpayer Money for Ren Cen Revamp

Dismissing the lawsuit filed by the Public Interest Legal Foundation (PILF), based in Alexandria, Virginia, Judge Beckering stated that after more than nine months of discovery, PILF failed to identify any genuine issues for trial regarding the alleged unreasonableness of Michigan’s program.

Additionally, complaints from PILF regarding delays in obtaining records from Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson were also dismissed. Beckering noted that PILF’s initial request was delayed by the 2020 election but was eventually satisfied.

Secretary of State pleased about dismissal.

In a statement about the dismissal of the lawsuit, Secretary Benson said, “In the last several years, our state’s Bureau of Elections along with our clerks have done more work than ever before to increase the accuracy of our voter registration records and ensure the security and accuracy of our elections.”

She went on to say, “I’m gratified to see the courts affirm this work by dismissing this thinly veiled attempt to undermine voters’ faith in their voice, their vote, and our democracy. This is 2024. Voters should expect more attempts to fool them about our elections to follow this failed effort. And they should know we will continue to respond to those attacks with truth, facts, and data to give all citizens confidence that every valid vote, and only valid votes, will be counted in every election.”

PILF will appeal.

In response to the dismissal, PILF announced its intention to appeal the decision to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, arguing that the case holds national significance for election integrity. J. Christian Adams, the president of PILF, contended that keeping deceased individuals on voter rolls for extended periods is unreasonable and emphasized the need for clarity in the law.

In a previous story about the issue from Michigan News Source, we reported a mini-documentary that was done by PILF showing the gravestones of dead voters, who were born as far back as 1823, who are still on Michigan’s voter rolls.

What prompted the lawsuit?

MORE NEWS: Otsego County Man Faces Poaching Charges

The origins of the case trace back to 2020 when PILF, a conservative election integrity organization, began raising concerns about Michigan’s alleged sluggishness in removing deceased voters from its lists. The organization formally filed the lawsuit in November 2021.

PILF had put out a report in October of 2018 called “Motor Voter Mayhem” detailing thousands of errors on Michigan’s voter rolls including “foreign nationals registered to vote, people registered more than once and registrants with implausible birth years.”

Secretary Benson claims that her office is doing enough.

Benson’s office countered the allegations, asserting that it promptly cancels voter registrations upon receiving official death confirmations, typically obtained weekly from the Social Security Administration’s Master Death Index.