LANSING, Mich. (AP) – Former Michigan governors and elected officials from both parties are joining a broader effort to fight misinformation and attacks on voting and vote counting in several swing states ahead of the fast-approaching presidential election.
The Democracy Defense Project also includes former officials from several states where then-President Donald Trump sought to overturn his 2020 election loss, including Georgia. Their goal is to build confidence in the election through radio and TV ads, media coverage, and local engagement.
“If necessary, we speak together when people try to question the honesty or accuracy of our voting. We believe in our system and we don’t appreciate people who make up stories that are self-serving,” former Michigan Gov. James Blanchard told The Associated Press before the Michigan chapter officially launched Thursday.
Blanchard, a Democrat who served as governor from 1983 to 1991, is joined on the Michigan team by former Republican Gov. John Engler, former Democratic Lt. Gov. John Cherry and former Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Bishop.
The focus on strengthening electoral confidence in battleground states follows years of attacks on their electoral systems by Trump and his allies, who have consistently sought to sway the 2020 presidential election results.
In Michigan, where 15 Republicans have been charged with voter fraud, Trump pressured officials not to confirm the results, and armed protesters surrounded the secretary of state’s home, alleging voter fraud.
Many officials and advocates are bracing for similar challenges this year as Trump warns his followers — without evidence — that Democrats are trying to cheat.
According to a new study by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and USAFacts, most Americans trust election results certified by the government at least “on a case-by-case basis,” while Republicans are more likely to trust Trump and his campaign. At the same time, the majority of Republicans believe Trump’s lies that Joe Biden was not legally elected president.
In Tuesday’s debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump again cast doubt on the 2020 election results, even as his campaign lost dozens of lawsuits, his own attorney general said there was no evidence of widespread fraud, and estimates, tallies and audits of battleground states where he denied losing — including Michigan – all confirmed Biden’s victory.
Bishop said hearing Trump continue to deny that he lost the 2020 election was “painful to watch” and that he “turned off the TV at that moment.”
– It was a big disappointment for me to see this thing again. I didn’t expect that. I don’t think most people did, he said. “I think it’s a crushing blow to the Republican nominee.”
Engler, who served as governor from 1991 to 2003, shared a similar sentiment, saying Trump “lost the election, he didn’t serve as president and he won’t serve as president for a day in this four-year term.”
“It’s over. And I think he’s a fool to keep thinking about this,” Engler said.
Many other members of the Democracy Defense Project have condemned Trump’s comments about the 2020 election. Even so, some still plan to support him this year, said Brian Jones, the group’s national spokesman, adding that they “still believe in the importance of our electoral system and that the 2020 election was decided correctly.”
The group operates in eight states: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
