ADAMS TOWNSHIP, MI (WNWN/WTVB) – Michigan’s Secretary of State office says election equipment reported missing from Adams Township in Hillsdale County was recovered by the Michigan State Police on Friday in the Adams Township Hall.
The equipment was recovered after the State Police executed a search warrant.
Spokeswoman Tracy Wimmer did not give details in a statement released by the Secretary of State’s office Friday evening but said an investigation was being conducted to determine if anyone had tampered with the equipment.
Wimmer went on to say, “We do not have further comment on the specifics of any matter that is currently the subject of an ongoing criminal investigation, but we will and do refer any suspected violation of state or federal election law to the proper authorities. Protecting the security of Michigan’s election system is at the forefront of Secretary (Jocelyn) Benson’s responsibility as the state’s chief election officer – that’s one of the reasons our 2020 election was the most secure election in Michigan history. She has and will continue to utilize every legal tool available to protect the integrity of our democracy, particularly at a time when disinformation and false conspiracies continue to escalate.”
Adams Township Clerk Stephanie Scott was barred by the Michigan Bureau of Elections earlier this week from running this Tuesday’s township election because the state felt she did not take steps to ensure the security of the vote. The Hillsdale County Clerks Office was then assigned by the state to supervise the Adams Township election.
The Detroit News reports a tabulator tablet which Hillsdale County Clerk Marney Kast describes as the “brains of the tabulator” was missing last Tuesday after Kast’s office retrieved equipment from the township.
Scott told the Detroit News she has been wrestling with the Elections Bureau over the past several months about concerns she had about the security of the township tabulators.
(The Detroit News contributed to this report)
