Trump lawyers wrongly cite election "red flags" in Michigan that actually happened in Minnesota
A Trump campaign lawsuit focusing on election fraud in Georgia has used data from precincts in Michigan to highlight "anomalies and red flags" that have led to discrepancies in vote totals.
An affidavit in the legal filing was signed by a Texas resident who specializes in cybersecurity. In it, the cybersecurity expert points to voter turnout that exceeds 100% in dozens of Michigan precincts.
The problem is, they aren't precincts in Michigan. They are precincts in Minnesota. The miscalculation was first reported by the PowerLine Blog.
The affidavit was part of lawsuits that lawyers representing the president discussed during a press conference on Thursday. At the heart of the lawsuit are issues concerning companies that supply hardware and software to states for the purpose of running their elections.
Furthermore, it is unclear where data listed in the affidavit came from. For example, data in the affidavit listed Monticello P-2 with 138 percent of presidential votes cast per estimated voters. According to data on the Minnesota Secretary of State website, there were 4,202 registered voters in Monticello P-2, but only 3,776 votes were cast in the presidential race – showing turnout was actually less than 100 percent.
President Trump's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, discusses allegations of voter fraud at a press conference on Thursday, November 19, 2020.
The attorneys believe that some of the voting discrepancies they say they have found are due to issues in the equipment provided by these companies.
An example of one of these mistakes happened in Michigan in Antrim County. At one point during election night, 6,000 votes were switched from Donald Trump to Joe Biden, something election officials initially attributed to a glitch in the software.
Russell Ramsland, the individual who signed the affidavit, believes he has found dozens of other errors that can be linked to the election equipment throughout Michigan.
"A preliminary analysis using data obtained from the Michigan Secretary of State pinpoints a statistical anomaly so far outside of every statistical norm as to be virtually impossible," read a paragraph from the affidavit. "There were at least 19 precincts where the Presidential Votes Cast compared to the Estimated Voters based on Reported Statistics exceeded 100%."
The precincts include Benville Twp, Monticello P-1, Monticello P-2, Albertville P-2, Albertville P-1, Bradford Twp, Veldt Twp, Champion Twp, Kent City, Wanger Twp, Kandiyohi Twp, Lake Lillian Twp, Hokah Twp, Houston Twp, Hill River Twp, Sunnyside Twp, Brownsville Twp, Oslo, and Eyota Twp.
If you search for any of these precincts, you will not find them in Michigan. You will, however, find them in Minnesota.
You will also find the other 25 precincts the affidavit lists as also not in Michigan. But you will, also, find them in Minnesota. Even Detroit Lakes, a rural city that's closer to Fargo, North Dakota than the actual Motor City.
It's not entirely clear how this mistake occurred. But the error also falls in line with the simple mistakes the Trump campaign's legal team has made during the barrage of lawsuits it has filed in swing states.