The Michigan Board of Canvassers met to discuss the Americans for Citizens Voting petition. They reviewed its validity for placement on the 2026 November General Election ballot. The group had collected over 700,000 signatures. This exceeded the 446,198 signatures required to put the proposal before voters. Michigan’s Board of Canvassers rejected it after a random sample of 1,000 signatures yielded only 624 confirmed valid signatures. Americans for Citizen Voting needed 629 valid signatures to qualify in their sample.

The Michigan Board of Canvassers has four members: Republicans Paul Cordes and Richard Houskamp and Democrats Mary Ellen Guerwitz and Heather Cummings. The board deadlocked at 2-2 on whether to certify the petition and prepare it to be placed on the ballot. Both Republicans voted in favor of certification, while both Democrats voted against.

According to Americans for Citizen Voting, the petition aims to “establish language in Michigan’s Constitution stating that only U.S. citizens may vote in state and local elections.” The petition would require voters to show valid identification proving they are a U.S. citizens before voting.

Americans for Citizen Voting plans to appeal this decision to the Michigan Supreme Court. The Michigan Supreme Court could force certification if they find that the petitioners have fulfilled the signature requirement. The composition of the Michigan Supreme Court is six democrat justices to one Republican justice. Americans for Citizen Voting stands ready to take the case all the way to the United States Supreme Court.

According to the Heritage Foundation, there have been 19 instances of election fraud in Michigan dating back as far as 2014. A story we reported on last week focused on six non-voters charged by Attorney General Dana Nessel for voting in the 2024 general election.