A prosecutorial probe is continuing six months after state election officials referred 31 cases of potential double voting to Attorney General Bill Schuette’s office in an effort to root out voter fraud. A statewide audit released in February found that 31 Michiganians appeared to vote twice in the November presidential election — once by absentee ballot and once in person on Election Day. The discoveries led then-state Elections Director Chris Thomas to refer the cases to Attorney General’s office for the first time in at least 36 years. Thomas told reporters in February it was part of a “far-reaching” anti-fraud effort to “aggressively root out illegal voting” after the state’s investigation into voting irregularities in Detroit found mismatched vote totals in the Nov. 8 election. Half a year later, Schuette’s office is still looking into the cases and has no updates on the investigation, said spokeswoman Andrea Bitely.
“Justice has no timeline,” said Bitely, who added that some voters in question are difficult for state investigators to track down.
Bitely said the AG’s office has three years from the date that the offense is discovered before the cases can no longer be prosecuted.
Twenty-nine cases involved voters from Metro Detroit, including 14 from the city. It’s unclear if the cases were simple mistakes or intentional fraud.
Full Article: Six months later, AG probe into double voting drags on.