Michigan's attorney general filed charges against 16 alleged fake electors for their roles in seeking to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
Each person involved faces six charges, according to the attorney general's indictment.
Michigan’s attorney general charged sixteen “fake electors” for their alleged roles in a plot to overturn the 2020 presidential election. https://t.co/OFreryhcHq
— The Hill (@thehill) July 19, 2023
“That was a lie,” Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel (D) said in a video announcing the charges.
“They weren’t the duly elected and qualified electors, and each of the defendants knew it,” she continued. “They carried out these actions with the hope and belief that the electoral votes of Michigan’s 2020 election would be awarded to the candidate of their choosing, instead of the candidate that Michigan voters actually chose.”
The Michigan attorney general has announced charges against the state's 16 "fake electors" for their alleged role in the scheme after the 2020 presidential election.https://t.co/hGdqfzXfdG
— MSN (@MSN) July 18, 2023
"The false electors' actions undermined the public's faith in the integrity of our elections and, we believe, also plainly violated the laws by which we administer our elections in Michigan," Nessel said in a statement, according to ABC News.
"My department has prosecuted numerous cases of election law violations throughout my tenure, and it would be malfeasance of the greatest magnitude if my department failed to act here in the face of overwhelming evidence of an organized effort to circumvent the lawfully cast ballots of millions of Michigan voters in a presidential election," it added.
The 16 electors ranged in age from 55 to 82, with the charges following the reopening of the investigation on the second anniversary of January 6.
The charges also come as former President Donald Trump reportedly received a letter from special counsel Jack Smith warning of a potential upcoming indictment for his role on January 6.
Trump blasted the letter in a fiery statement on Tuesday that referred to the move as a political witch hunt.
The news also adds to tensions as the 2024 election heats up, with Trump continuing to poll ahead of other contenders in a potential rematch against President Joe Biden.
