GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Tuesday night, Tudor Dixon, John Gibbs, Rashida Tlaib and Shri Thanedar were among the handful of candidates who each won their respective primary races.
However, the results aren’t official just yet.
Thursday, the Kent County Board of Canvassers began verifying the results, to make sure they are accurate.
“Today we’re starting kind of that final checks and balance to our process here for elections in Michigan,” Kent County Clerk Lisa Posthumus Lyons told FOX 17. “This is the county board of canvassers. This is where we really verify that the results are accurate, that everything went smoothly, that there was security and integrity in the election.”
“The reason you see 2 ✉️ is bc again I talk a lot about MI checks & balances, and redundancy and the paper trail. Paper is the holy grail for election integrity.”
— Lauren Edwards (@LaurenEdwardsTV) August 4, 2022
Kent Co. Clerk Lisa Posthumus Lyons explains how the board of canvassers work & ensures all 🗳 are counted.// @FOX17 pic.twitter.com/5LT9vAR1k8
Lyons said the board of canvassers is made up of two democrats and two republicans, appointed by the county board of commissioners. They’re split into two groups, along with their assistants, and go through the poll books and result tapes for each of the 496 precincts in the county.
“We really check those results tapes with the results that were reported, make sure those balance,” Lyons said. “We check the number of ballots that were counted against the number of ballots that were issued in the poll book, make sure those match up.”
If they don’t and the group finds a discrepancy, they track it and investigate it. Sometimes they find an imbalance, mainly a number, that doesn’t match up.
“Say we had 500 ballots were cast but we, really in our poll book, we had 501 ballots issued. Well that’s what they do in there,” added Lyons pointing to the room where the canvassers were working in the County Administration building on Monroe Avenue. “They dig in and find out that information. So, there’ll be notes in the poll book. A lot of times what we find is that generally there’s an imbalance for ballots, somebody in the polls messed up. They had to give that ballot back and get a new one so they could cast it.”
Everything is auditable, she said. However, their goal is voter integrity.
“We only have two weeks to go through every single number in the entire county. Every single ballot, you know ballot numbers issued versus ballots cast. So, it’s a big undertaking but it’s really critical,” Lyons said. “Something I really think is important for the public to know: come and check it out. I can tell you that our elections here in Kent County are secure. They’re transparent. They’re fair and they’re accurate but don’t just take my word for it, come and see for yourself.”
Legally, the canvassers have 14 days from Election Day to complete their work. But staffers said they’re hoping to wrap up by Friday, August 12. Lyons emphasized that everyone — from voters to candidates — are invited to watch them work.
“Security and transparency and election integrity, that’s the name of the game,” Lyons added. “I want the public to believe in the election process. I want them to have confidence. And when we show them the process and they participate that’s the best way that they can feel confident.”
For more election coverage, including results, interviews and interactive maps, click here.
