Protesters Gather at Michigan Election Official's House

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson says 'threats' are futile
By Newser Editors,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 7, 2020 12:27 PM CST
Protesters Gather at Michigan Election Official's House
In this Nov. 4 file photo, a Republican election challenger at right watches over election inspectors as they examine a ballot as votes are counted into the early morning hours at the central counting board in Detroit.   (AP Photo/David Goldman, File)

The election protests in Michigan are getting personal. One Black lawmaker posted threatening voicemails she received about a lynching. And now the state's top elections official is dealing with nighttime protests at her home, reports WXYZ. Demonstrators demanding that the election results be overturned gathered outside the Detroit home of Jocelyn Benson Saturday night, and one livestreamed the event, per the Washington Post. The Detroit Free Press estimates that a "couple dozen" people were there, chanting "Stop the Steal!" and other slogans. "We are over here in the fricking dead of night, man," says Genevieve Peters, who posted the video. "We are letting her know that we're not taking this bull---- election."

But critics say things went too far. "They shouted baseless conspiracy theories about the election, and in videos uploaded to social media, at least one individual could be heard shouting 'you're murderers' within earshot of her child’s bedroom," Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said in a joint statement. "This mob-like behavior is an affront to basic morality and decency." Nessel, Worthy, and Benson are Democrats. Benson, for her part, says she was about to read the How the Grinch Stole Christmas with her 4-year-old when the protesters arrived. In an online post, she says the protesters' "threats" will not succeed in overturning the will of the state's 5.5 million voters. No arrests were made during the demonstration. (More Election 2020 stories.)

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