DETROIT (Washington Insider Magazine) – After election employees determined campaign petitions were tainted by false signatures, a judge refused to put an ex Detroit chief of police on the Republican ticket for governor of Michigan, making him the third contender to lose a court appeal.
It’s a stunning blow to James Craig, who is well-known in southeastern Michigan who ran for office after retiring as Detroit’s top cop last year.
Judge Elizabeth Gleicher of the Court of Claims indicated she must follow a Michigan appeals court’s ruling that kept 2 other Republicans, Perry Johnson and Michael Markey, off the Aug. 2 ballot.
Other grounds were stated in Gleicher’s opinion, which was dated Wednesday but revealed Thursday.
Although there is no indication that the contenders were conscious of the fraud, it appears that false signatures were handed in by hired circulators. Attorneys for the Board of State Canvassers dubbed it an “unprecedented situation” in a court document.
The applicants were found disqualified by the board last week after a tie vote. Because of fake signatures, state election officials claimed Craig, Johnson, Markey, Michael Brown, and Donna Brandenburg didn’t fulfill the 15,000-signature standard.
After eliminating 9,879. Craig seemed to have only around 10,200 legitimate signatures, according to election officials.
He said that the state has a responsibility to scrutinize signatures line by line, matching them to the list of eligible voters before removing them. Only 20% of the questionable signatures were verified formally.
However, the appeals court ruled that this was not necessary.
The candidates’ last hope is the Michigan Supreme Court. The state has stated that the ballot must be completed by Friday.
According to ABC NEWS, 5 other Republican candidates have received ballot access, namely Tudor Dixon, a former conservative TV news anchor who has the support of Betsy DeVos, the former director of the US Education department under the Trump administration.
Kevin Rinke, a previous owner of car dealerships in the Detroit region, said he’s willing to put up at least $10 million of his own money. He has advertised himself on television and online.
