LANSING, Mich. — Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel says 16 people have been charged for their alleged roles as false electors in the wake of the 2020 presidential election.
Nessel’s office says two of those people are from West Michigan. One of them is Wyoming Mayor Kent Vanderwood. The other is 81-year-old Rose Rook from Paw Paw.
FOX 17 reached out to the city of Wyoming for comment, and received the following statement:
"We are aware of the charges against Kent Vanderwood. These actions did not take place in his capacity as a city official. With any charges, there is a legal process that needs to be followed."
We’re told all 16 suspects were charged with the following:
- Conspiracy to commit forgery (x1)
- Forgery (x2)
- Conspiracy to commit uttering and publishing (x1)
- Uttering and publishing (x1)
- Conspiracy to commit election law forgery (x1)
- Election law forgery (x2)
They all face a maximum of 85 years in prison if convicted of all charges.
“The false electors’ actions undermined the public’s faith in the integrity of our elections and, we believe, also plainly violated the laws by which we administer our elections in Michigan,” says Nessel. "My department has prosecuted numerous cases of election law violations throughout my tenure, and it would be malfeasance of the greatest magnitude if my department failed to act here in the face of overwhelming evidence of an organized effort to circumvent the lawfully cast ballots of millions of Michigan voters in a presidential election.”
The suspects allegedly met in secret below the Republican Party headquarters on Dec. 14, 2022 and signed numerous certificates declaring to act as “duly elected and qualified electors for President and Vice President of the United States of America for the State of Michigan,” according to the state.
We’re told those certificates were later sent to the U.S. Senate and National Archives in an attempt to grant the state’s electoral votes to their preferred candidate over the candidate who won the state.
Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson released the following statement Tuesday regarding the charges:
"I was pleased to learn of the felony charges filed [Tuesday] against 16 individuals who allegedly sought to disenfranchise Michigan voters and disrupt the certification of the 2020 presidential election by submitting fake electoral votes.
"As Michigan's Chief Election Officer, I have a sworn duty to follow the rule of law, protect and defend the legal vote and ensure our elections are safe, secure and accurate.
"As we begin to see accountability and justice for those who were part of an actionable plan to subvert the will of the people in 2020, we must also remember that we are still in the midst of a nationally coordinated effort to weaken democracy. As we prepare for the 2024 presidential election, [Tuesday's] charges are the first in an ongoing effort to not just seek justice for the wrongs of the past, but to ensure they do not happen again.
"My office looks forward to fully cooperating with any subsequent legal efforts to bring those who violated the law to justice."
The allegations remain under investigation and may lead to additional suspects in the case, Nessel's office explains.
No court dates have been scheduled yet.
