State
Elections Director Chris Thomas stated this week that the Board of State
Canvassers is prepared to examine, re-tabulate and ultimately certify the City
of Detroit Mayoral primary election ballots.
Approximately
18,000 ballots have been questioned by the Wayne County Board of Canvassers,
causing them not to certify the election results. City election workers entered
the Arabic numerical total for each spelling of a write-in candidate’s name;
however, did not also show the individual tally marks that would add to the
total. Although statute does not call for the tally marks, County election
procedures do.
The
Wayne County Board of Canvassers initially considered certifying the election
results without the 18,000 ballots which would have resulted in a change in
election results, handing the victory to Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon
instead of former Detroit Medical Center CEO Mike Duggan. When the Board decided
not to certify the results, the issue moved to the Board of State Canvassers
under statute.
Mr.
Thomas has indicated that the lack of tally marks does not represent a
significant breach in protocol and that the roughly 18,000 votes should be
examined and counted. The State Board of Canvassers is expected to meet next
week in Detroit and will likely take one to two days to produce a certified
election result.