MICHIGAN – Today, Eaton County Clerk Diana Bosworth and Ingham County Clerk Barb Byrum, along with voting rights advocacy groups All Voting Is Local, League of Women Voters of Michigan, Voters Not Politicians, Campus Vote Project and Protect Democracy, will announce support for Sec. Benson’s $177 million dollar election and Proposal 02. implementation budget recommendations. Recently, Eaton County officials passed a resolution in support of Sec. Benson’s sustainable funding model for elections and the necessary funding to implement Prop 02.
Jamie Lyons Eddy, Deputy Director at Voters Not Politicians, stated “Voters Not Politicians’ grassroots army played a key role in not only getting Proposal 2 on the ballot, but ensuring that it passed this past November. But our work is not over. We must ensure that the constitutional amendment is implemented correctly, which is why we are mobilizing thousands of volunteers to get in front of lawmakers and make it clear that voters want and need fully funded elections. Anything short of that is a disservice to the people of Michigan.”
Barb Byrum, Ingham County Clerk, said “Elections were deemed to be Critical Infrastructure years ago, but you wouldn’t know it based on the funding allocated to election administration.”
Matt Patton, Michigan State Policy Advocate of Protect Democracy, shared, “Funding implementation of Prop 2 is simply about complying with state constitutional requirements that help keep our elections more safe, secure and efficient,” said Matt Patton, Michigan State Policy Advocate for Protect Democracy. “Prop 2 enjoyed broad bipartisan support from Michigan voters and business leaders – we look forward to seeing bipartisan support for this critical funding by our leaders in Lansing.”
Ben Gardner, Senior Campaign Manager at All Voting Is Local, stated, “Elections officials have consistently called attention to the lack of a sustainable funding system for election administration, which leads to consistently underfunded elections. Local clerks are often left to administer elections on insufficient budgets and short timelines. Elections administrators are part of critical infrastructure, and our state leaders must support them by providing sufficient funding for our city, township, and county clerks to successfully implement Proposal 02, administer our elections, and serve voters.”
