Jordan Acker Twitter
Michigan’s presidential election results could be completed today, but pro-Trump supporters have descended on a ballot counting center in Detroit, with “poll challengers” filling the room.
Videos and photos of the scene have started to circulate on Twitter. Some videos show people who claim to have proof of election and voter fraud. Others show election officials covering the glass panels in the counting center as the scene in the lobby just outside its doors escalated.
Jordan Acker, a lawyer in Michigan, tweeted a video of the scene. Acker wrote, “…the @MIGOP has so overwhelmed the Detroit vote counting room with ‘challengers’ (most who are not lawyers), preventing actual Dem lawyers from actually getting in. Sure feels like a deliberate attempt to try to steal the election.”
Kayla Ruble, a reporter based in Michigan, tweeted, “A Detroit elections officials attempting to deescalating an increasingly tense situation outside the ballot count at TCF Center. republican and democratic challenger limits are at capacity but Republican supporters are not accepting the explanation.”
A Detroit elections officials attempting to deescalating an increasingly tense situation outside the ballot count at TCF Center. republican and democratic challenger limits are at capacity but Republican supporters are not accepting the explanation.
The Trump campaign has filed a request for Michigan to stop counting ballots. The lawsuit alleges that the campaign didn’t have “meaningful access” to areas where the ballots were being counted. On Wednesday afternoon, Trump supporters could be seen chanting “stop the vote” outside the Detroit ballot counting center.
Here’s what you need to know:
WATCH: Videos of ‘Poll Challengers’ Overwhelming a Detroit Ballot Counting Center
Above is the video Acker shared of the ballot counting center Wednesday afternoon. Matt Finn, a national correspondent for Fox News, shared a similar video of the same ballot counting center. In the video, election officials can be seen covering up a glass panel area of the center.
Finn wrote, “The scene at Detroit’s absentee ballot counting center is growing more heated. The windows now being covered up. Allegations of violations. Sec. of State says she welcomes challenges.”
The scene at Detroit’s absentee ballot counting center is growing more heated. The windows now being covered up. Allegations of violations. Sec. of State says she welcomes challenges.
Police officers eventually had to “push back the crowds” as the “pounded on the doors and windows” and shouted their protests, according to the Detroit Free Press. According to CNN, several individuals have been removed from the center throughout the day for their “tempers.” Others who were on the scene reported chants of “stop the vote” reverberating through the room, in a clear reference to the Trump campaign’s desire to stop vote-counting in the state.
Here’s a video of a group of people chanting in the room:
Michigan election officials have not indicated any plans to stop tallying the final votes for the state. Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey addressed protesters in a prepared statement, according to the Detroit Free Press, saying, “We will not allow ANYONE to distract us from the job at hand. … Our charge is to remain calm, focused and deliberate as we continue the task at hand.”
As of 9 p.m. Eastern time, more than 99% of the votes had been reported for the state, with Biden projected as the winner with a 50% lead to Trump’s 48%.
Another group of people gathered outside of the ballot counting center, unable to enter due to the center being at max capacity. They, too, have been chanting “stop the vote.” You can see it in the video below:
Trump Has Repeatedly Tweeted Accusations of Voter Fraud & Election Tampering Taking Place in Michigan
Wow! It looks like Michigan has now found the ballots necessary to keep a wonderful young man, John James, out of the U.S. Senate. What a terrible thing is happening!
In the past 24 hours, the president has repeatedly incited mistrust around the legitimacy of the presidential election, particularly after Biden took the lead on Wednesday in swing states like Wisconsin, Michigan and Arizona.
In one such instance, Trump retweeted a tweet by Matt Mackowiak, a conservative columnist, in which an apparent discrepancy was highlighted.
Mackowiak tweeted, “An update gives Biden 100% of new votes — 128k+” Conservative writer Matt Walsh retweeted the Mackowiak tweet and added, “This is reason enough to go to court. No honest person can look at this and say it’s normal and unconcerning.” Trump then joined in, retweeting the screenshots and saying, “WHAT IS THIS ALL ABOUT?” Twitter has since hidden all three tweets behind a message saying, “Some or all of the content shared in this Tweet is disputed and might be misleading about an election or other civic process.”
This tweet was taken and share honestly. I have now learned the MI update referenced was a typo in one county.
I have deleted the original tweet.
The screenshot shared by Mackowiak has since been proven to be false. At no point did Biden receive 100% of a “ballot dump” in Michigan, or any other state.
Read Next: FACT CHECK: Did Biden Win 100% of a ‘Ballot Dump’ in Michigan?