 Green Party Candidate Jill Stein Recount Effort Hits A Judicial Wall By N3 News Team and Andrew Robinson, Newaygo County Clerk To Recount or not Recount…. that has been the question. With Michigan one of the three states where Green Party candidate Jill Stein called for a further verification of the ballots cast on Election Day, County Clerks throughout the state scrambled to prepare for what looked to be a rather major undertaking. Some counties had begun the process and Newaygo County Clerk Andrew Robinson was mustering the necessary resources and... ...preparation to go forward with the local action beginning on Friday.
Then Wednesday night, it all changed. N3 asked Mr. Robinson if he might be so kind as to explain to our readers (as well as to our equally puzzled editor) just how this recount-ending action transpired and what we might look for next. Being the kind and charitable public servant he is, Mr. Robinson sent us this: As of late last night, all Counties received notice from the state Bureau of Elections that the Hon. Mark A. Goldsmith of the U.S. District Court of Southern Michigan has halted the recount in Michigan. In his finding, Judge Goldsmith states: “… the Plaintiffs (Jill Stein) have not presented evidence of tampering or mistake. Instead, they present speculative claims going to the vulnerability of the voting machinery – but not actual injury. Because mere potentiality does not amount to a claim that the vote was not fairly conducted, Plaintiffs’ new claims are insufficient to maintain the existing TRO (Temporary Restraining Order). No likelihood of success on that claim has been shown.” Thus, the temporary restraining order against the State Court of Appeals decision to halt the recount process has been immediately lifted. Jill Stein, for her part, has said this morning that “this fight is the right one and it’s only just begun.” She is conferring with her legal team to determine how best to proceed, but will likely appeal to the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals. This Court, which has ruled strongly in support of state’s rights over the past year, is, in my humble opinion, unlikely to trump the State decision to halt the recount. We have also been advised by the Bureau of Elections that they do not expect the decision to be overturned either. In the meantime, we are canceling two training scheduled for today for recounters, tearing down the setup in the Board Room, notifying volunteers, and filing away the dozens of useless documents printed and prepared for this event, now cancelled. So it looks as though this latest chapter in what has been perhaps the most bizarre election and post-election in memory has come to a close in our state and county. For now, anyway. Comments are closed.
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March 2025
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