Current Events > Republicans Accused of Forging Ballot Signatures in Critical Swing State

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Michigan Democrats asked state election officials to investigate Republican Senate candidates on Friday, accusing the Republicans of fraud and potential forgery of ballot signatures.

Michigan is shaping up to be a critical battleground state in the 2024 presidential election. The state has swung between Republican and Democratic candidates in past elections, making it a key target for both parties. Following the retirement of Democratic Senator Debbie Stabenow, Republicans and Democrats have been vying for her Senate seat that is expected to be highly competitive with Representative Elissa Slotkin as the Democratic frontrunner for the Senate nomination and former Representative Mike Rogers as the Republican frontrunner with the endorsement of former President Donald Trump.

On Friday, attorneys for the Michigan Democratic Party and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) submitted a letter to the Board of State Canvassers asking election officials to investigate whether nominating petitions submitted by Republican U.S. Senate candidates Rogers, Justin Amash and businessman Sandy Pensler as well as former candidate Peter Meijer had "patterns that indicate the presence of potential forgery and other fraudulent signature gathering tactics."

"The apparent fraud uncovered demands an immediate investigation" and that the state Bureau of Elections and the canvassing board "should uphold their responsibility to protect the integrity of Michigan's elections and conduct a full, thorough examination," Michigan Democratic Party Chairwoman Lavora Barnes said in a statement.

Newsweek has reached out to Rogers, Amash, Pensler, Meijer and the Michigan Democratic Party via email for comment.

The letter claims that further investigation is needed as the candidates' submissions appear to have potential fraudulent signatures, with petition sheets that appeared to be filled out by only one person, voters' names appearing across multiple petitions in different handwriting and other evidence of potential fraud.