Michigan Senate Democrats: Fine those who lie to keep people from voting

Lansing — Michigan Senate Democrats introduced a bill Tuesday that would allow for fines to be issued against individuals who intentionally spread lies about election dates or registration laws to prevent people from voting.

The proposal, sponsored by Sen. Mary Cavanagh, D-Redford Township, came amid increasing concerns about the use of artificial intelligence and misinformation in the upcoming presidential election. Michigan is widely expected to be among a handful of states that will decide which party controls the White House next year.

Under the measure, a person who intentionally makes a false statement about the time or place of an election, restrictions on voter eligibility, criminal penalties for casting a ballot or someone's registration status would face a fine of up to $1,000.

The individuals would have to know their misrepresentation was false and make it "with the intent to impede or prevent another individual from exercising the individual's right to vote in an election," according to the language of the bill.

"We want to make sure that no voice is stifled by some disinformation that comes out," Cavanagh told reporters.

Cavanagh said she previously saw letters being handed out at polling places in Metro Detroit that said voting locations had been "closed" or "moved." The proposed law also would cover phone calls made to seniors about Election Day getting shifted to a different date, she said.

An organization that employs someone who spreads lies to prevent people from voting would face a fine of up to $10,000, according to the bill.

Eight Senate Democrats signed on as co-sponsors. The Democratic leadership referred the proposal to the Senate Elections and Ethics Committee.

It would have to pass the full Senate and House and gain Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's signature to become law.

Sen. Ruth Johnson, a former secretary of state and Oakland County clerk, said she was worried the policy, if enacted, could be abused for political reasons.

"I appreciate the intent of this bill, but we need to look at the details," said Johnson, R-Holly. "An organization could be maliciously trying to disenfranchise voters and they only get a $10,000 fine, while a person could misspeak about what hours the polls are open and potentially get charged with a crime."

But Cavanagh said she worked with the American Civil Liberties Union to address concerns about protecting freedom of speech.

"We think it is written narrowly enough to ensure that individuals who are purposely trying to mislead and disenfranchise voters could be held accountable while ensuring that individuals who may accidentally or unknowingly share misinformation about elections are not at risk for being charged with a crime," said Merissa Kovach, legislative director for the ACLU of Michigan.

Two conservative activists, Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman, were charged with disseminating a robocall intended to deter Black people from participating in absentee voting during the 2020 election.

Wohl and Burkman allegedly created and disseminated as many as 12,000 robocalls in 2020 to Metro Detroiters discouraging mail-in voting. The calls told voters their personal information would join a public database law enforcement officials and credit card companies use if they participated in mail-in voting.

cmauger@detroitnews.com

Staff Writer Kara Berg contributed.