DETROIT — Reports of misleading voter robocalls are cropping up in Michigan as an estimated 2 million voters head to the polls to select America's next president.
In Flint, there have been reports of multiple robocalls warning voters that they should vote Wednesday to avoid long lines, state Attorney General Dana Nessel said Tuesday.
"Obviously this is FALSE and an effort to suppress the vote," Nessel said in a tweet. "No long lines and today is the last day to vote. Don't believe the lies! Have your voice heard!"
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson issued separate statements Tuesday reminding Flint voters that in order to vote, they must be in line before 8 p.m. Tuesday.
"Lines in the area and across the state are minimal and moving quickly, and Michigan voters can feel confident that leaders across state and local government are vigilant against these kinds of attacks on their voting rights and attempts at voter suppression," Benson said in a statement.
The report comes a day after Nessel warned Dearborn voters Monday of a text message falsely telling voters that there were "ballot sensor errors" in tabulators that led to the misreading of presidential votes.
The text message was sent to at least one voter and flagged by the American Civil Liberties Union, which alerted Nessel's office, said Tracy Wimmer, a spokeswoman for Benson's office.
"That's not an issue," Wimmer said. "You vote for whoever you want to vote for and the tabulator will tabulate it correctly."
Voter misinformation can be reported at michigan.gov/ElectionSecurity or at misinformation@michigan.gov.
The robocalls come weeks after conservative activists Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman allegedly orchestrated thousands of calls in Detroit that made claims to discourage voters from mailing in absentee ballots, including warning about personal information added to a database available to law enforcement.
A federal district judge ordered Wohl and Burkman to make curative calls dispelling the misinformation. The pair also faces felony charges in Michigan for the alleged calls. Burkman and Wohl have argued they are innocent and didn't make the calls.
The state had received back about 3.1 million of the 3.5 million absentee ballots requested as of Tuesday morning, a record absentee number as the state works to decrease long lines at polls during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Still, long lines were reported as polling locations opened at 7 a.m. local time Tuesday, and about a dozen reserve poll workers were deployed Tuesday morning to Pontiac and Grand Rapids to help there, Benson spokesman Jake Rollow said. The state has more than 1,500 poll workers in reserve to deploy as needed.
The state believes at least 2 million people will vote in person Tuesday. If the estimates prove accurate, Michigan is on pace to set exceed the current voter turnout record of 5.08 million voters set in 2008 when Democrat Barack Obama was elected America's first Black president.
