Michigan Republicans Request Federal Election Monitoring Citing Benson’s Conflicts and Violations

By Patrice Johnson, Chairperson, Pure Integrity Michigan Elections

LANSING, MI – November 13, 2025 – A coalition of 21 Michigan Republican legislators from both the senate and house chambers has formally requested that U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi deploy federal election monitors to oversee Michigan’s 2026 primary and general elections, citing Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s unprecedented conflict of interest and extensive record of election law violations.

The letter, citing a troubling pattern of legal violations, federal non-compliance, and judicial rebukes, requests federal oversight.

“Secretary Benson will be running the very election in which she appears on the ballot as a candidate for governor,” State Representative Rachelle Smit (R-District 43), one of the letter’s signatories told PIME. “This isn’t just a theoretical conflict of interest—it’s an actual, unavoidable one. No candidate should be allowed to administer their own election. Federal oversight isn’t partisan; it’s necessary to ensure fairness and restore public trust.”

Benson’s office and campaign responded sharply to the request. Michigan Department of State Chief Communications Officer Angela Benander accused lawmakers of using “dangerous, false rhetoric to encourage President Trump to illegally interfere in our state’s ability to hold fair and free elections.” Campaign manager Nikki Goldschein stated that Benson has “overseen the most secure and transparent elections with the highest turnout in our state’s history.”

Senate Republican Leader Aric Nesbitt (R-Dist. 20), disagreed, “From giving licenses to illegals, letting noncitizens vote, and her refusal to cooperate with the DOJ, to a Judge saying she ‘manipulated the Presidential Ballot’ Jocelyn Benson has demonstrated time and again that she will not separate her own political bias from her official duties. Therefore, it is necessary that the Department of Justice provides oversight to ensure that she does not attempt to manipulate another election.” Nesbitt is also running for governor and is a potential opponent to Benson in the general election.

A Pattern of Violations

The request comes in the wake of multiple documented violations by Secretary Benson, beginning on the first day of her gubernatorial campaign. On January 22, 2025, Benson announced her candidacy in the lobby of the Richard H. Austin Building—a state-owned facility housing her own department—in clear violation of Michigan’s Campaign Finance Act.

Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office determined Benson violated Michigan’s campaign finance law but said it lacked authority to issue a fine or criminal charges.

More concerning is Benson’s refusal to cooperate with federal authorities. On September 25, 2025, the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Benson and the state of Michigan for failing to provide unredacted voter registration records, apparently violating the Civil Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, and Help America Vote Act.

“Secretary Benson’s refusal to hand over voter registration records to federal authorities isn’t just obstruction—it’s a red flag,” said Representative Smit. “When election officials hide information from federal oversight, every Michigan voter should be asking: What are they trying to hide? We’ve seen this pattern before—from the unauthorized mass mailing of ballot applications in 2020 to maintaining over 25,000 dead people on our voter rolls. Enough is enough.”

Dead Voters and Noncitizen Ballots

Audits and investigations have revealed more than 25,000 deceased individuals remaining on Michigan’s voter rolls, prompting litigation that has escalated to the U.S. Supreme Court. Despite clear obligations under the National Voter Registration Act, Benson’s office has resisted cleanup efforts, allowing ineligible entries to persist.

In the 2024 general election, at least 16 noncitizens were confirmed to have cast ballots under Benson’s oversight, despite Michigan law prohibiting noncitizen voting. Her office downplayed this as “rare,” but legislators argue it reveals systemic failures in citizenship verification.

Record of Judicial Defeats

Secretary Benson has been involved in over 69 election-related lawsuits—more than the combined total of Michigan’s previous four secretaries of state. On Oct 9, 2024, MFEI listed the eight election integrity lawsuits below in which judges had ruled against Secretary of State Benson. See Michigan court rules against SOS Benson for guiding clerks to count mismatched mail ballots:

1. RNC v Benson. Case No. 24-000148-MZ, Court of Claims, Oct. 10, 2024. Judge Brock Swartzle ruled to ensure mail ballots are cast and counted properly. Requires ballot serial number matching.

2. RNC v Benson, Case No. 24-000143-MX, Court of Claims, Sep. 27, 2024. Registrant signature on absentee ballot envelope must match signature on file.

3. RNC v Benson, Case No.24- 000041 Court of Claims. On July 30, 2024, Judge Christopher Yates of the Court of Claims ruled, “The ‘initial presumption”’ of validity in signature verification of absentee-ballot applications and envelopes mandated by the December 2023 guidance manual issued by Defendants is incompatible with the Constitution and laws of the state of Michigan, and (b) the catch line referring to an ‘initial presumption of validity’ in R 168.22 of the Michigan Administrative Code is incompatible with the Constitution and laws of the state of Michigan.”

4. Genetski v Benson. Case No. 20-000216-MM; 

   "The guidance issued by the Secretary of State on October 6, 2020, with respect to signature matching standards was issued in violation of the Administrative Standards Act," per Judge Christopher Murray, Court of Claims, Mar. 9, 2021.

5. Davis v Benson. Case No. 20-000207-MZ October 27, 2020, Judge Christopher Murray issued an injunction against the SOS's directive to ban the open carry of firearms in polling places.

6. Carra v Benson. Case No. 20-000211-MZ; Judge Cynthia Stephens issued a preliminary injunction against Benson and Brater’s legally unauthorized poll challenger directives.

7. Johnson v Benson. Civil Action No. 1:20-cv-948; On October 19, 2020, United States District Judge Paul Maloney ordered Benson to revise her guidance to comply with statute regarding the time and manner of election processes.

8. O’Halloran v Benson. Case No. 22-000162-MZ. On October 20, 2022, Court of Claims Judge Brock Swartzle ordered Benson to revise her poll challenger guidelines to comply with Michigan Election Law.

MLive reports that State Senator Ruth Johnson (R-District 24), a signatory to the letter and the plaintiff in #7 above, “ran for the state Senate while serving as secretary of state in 2018.”

However, no SOS candidates have run for the top slot of governor, previously served as Michigan.

“Having served in this office myself,” Senator Ruth Johnson said, “I understand the sacred trust voters place in the Secretary of State to administer elections fairly and according to law. What we’re seeing now is a pattern of overreach, non-compliance, and partisan administration that violates that trust.” Johnson served as Secretary of State from 2011-2019.

Pure Integrity Michigan Elections (PIME) has been sounding the alarm on Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s recent promulgation of three sets of election rules that PIME claims directly violate federal election law and systemically quash citizen oversight. With the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) deadlocked 50-50, these rules are taking effect automatically with zero legislative review.

Rule Set 14 (Electronic Pollbooks), effective October 23, 2025, requires destruction of electronic pollbook data within 7 days—violating federal law (52 USC § 20701) that mandates 22-month retention.

Rule Set 13 (Voter Registration Challenges), effective date pending, creates an impossible and legally unauthorized “personal knowledge” standard to block citizen challenges. It makes voter roll maintenance optional despite federal HAVA mandates, imposes $2,300 in fees per 100 challenges, and creates an illegal “protected class” for overseas voters—contradicting even Democrat AG Nessel’s own legal opinion #7322.

Rule Set 15 (Election Challengers), effective date pending, restricts poll challenger access beyond statutory authority and introduces a “liaison” ejection system with no legal basis. It too requires legally unauthorized deletion of data.

State Representative Rachelle Smit agrees that these aren’t just administrative updates, “Secretary Benson is making legally unauthorized changes to election procedures in violation of federal and state law, and they all tilt in one direction: less transparency, less accountability, and systematic destruction of evidence needed to verify election accuracy.” Smit chairs the House Election Integrity Committee and serves as House Speaker Pro Tempore.

MFEI has documented 800,000-plus potentially ineligible registrations in Michigan with a 27.6% error rate among inactive registrations. Michigan receives millions of dollars in federal HAVA funds and certifies compliance with HAVA law—all while implementing non-compliant rules. (See Ensuring Electoral Integrity: Issues Affecting Michigan’s Voter Roll Maintenance, published by Michigan Fair Elections Institute, Sept. 2025, pp. 1 and 2.)

The 2020 Legacy

Benson’s track record extends to the 2020 election, where nonpartisan audits exposed her failure to administer elections in accordance with state law. The unauthorized mass mailing of absentee ballot applications to all registered voters without legislative approval contributed to widespread concerns about election integrity and led to Michigan receiving a “D” grade from election integrity watchdogs.

MLive notes that Benson’s decision to mail absentee ballot applications during the COVID pandemic “was challenged in court, and the cases were dismissed by the Court of Claims in August 2020.” However, the dismissal did not address the underlying concern about unauthorized executive action.

“The 2020 election showed us what happens when one person has unchecked power over election administration,” said State Representative Steven Carra (R-District 36). “Now that same person wants to run for governor while simultaneously controlling the elections. That’s not safe, honest, and secure elections—that’s a recipe for disaster.”

Federal Monitoring: A Necessary Safeguard

The legislators are requesting that DOJ personnel observe polling places, absentee ballot processing, voter registration activities, and central count facilities across Michigan.

Representative Jay DeBoyer (R-Dist. 63), chair of the House Oversight Committee, emphasized the gravity of the situation. “This isn’t about politics—it’s about protecting every Michigan voter’s right to a fair and transparent election. When the person running the election is also running in the election and has a documented history of legal violations and federal non-compliance, external oversight becomes essential.”

State Senator Jim Runestad (R-District 23) told MFEI, “The DOJ already monitors elections in other states to ensure compliance with federal voting rights laws. Given Secretary Benson’s record and her unprecedented conflict of interest, Michigan clearly qualifies for such oversight. We’re simply asking for the same standard to be applied here.” Runestad serves as chair of the Michigan Republican Party.

Ed Martin, DOJ U.S. Pardon Attorney, said during a live video conference on Nov. 14, “Every state matters.” Some states exhibit behavior that seems to indicate fraud, he said, and the DOJ was “looking into blatant misuse of the system.”

Looking Forward

The legislators’ letter comes as Michigan prepares for what many expect to be a highly competitive 2026 gubernatorial race. With Benson both administering and participating in the election, legislators argue federal oversight is the only way to ensure impartiality.

Michigan Democratic Party Chair Curtis Hertel told MLive, “Republicans are opening the door to try and interfere in the 2026 election in a pathetic ploy for attention.”

However, Representative Smit told PIME, “Michigan voters deserve to know their elections are being run fairly, according to law, and without partisan manipulation. Federal monitoring provides that assurance. It’s time to prioritize election integrity over political convenience.”

The full letter (below) details additional concerns and provides extensive documentation of the violations cited. The legislators stated they stand ready to provide any additional information to support the request and urged prompt attention to what they called “a matter of national importance".

Signatories

The letter was signed by Senate Republican Leader Aric Nesbitt and includes signatures from Senators Ruth Johnson, Joe Bellino, Kevin Daley, Michele Hoitenga, Dan Lauwers, Jim Runestad, Lana Theis, and Michael Webber, along with Representatives Rachelle Smit, Steve Carra, Jay DeBoyer, Joseph Fox, Mike Hoadley, Nancy Jenkins-Arno, Gina Johnsen, Tom Kunse, Matt Maddock, Greg Markkanen, Dave Prestin, Jason Woolford, and Jennifer Wortz.

Patrice Johnson is chair and founder of Pure Integrity Michigan Elections, a nonprofit 501(c)4. Johnson has served as senior executive with a Fortune 50 technology company and founded five successful technology companies. In 2017, she authored the national award-winning book, the Fall and Rise of Tyler Johnson, the basis of a PBS-contracted documentary film. Finding Tyler.

AI was used in the creation of this article.