(C) Florida Phoenix This story was originally published by Florida Phoenix and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . 16 Michigan Republicans charged with felonies in 2020 fake elector scheme [1] ['Anna Liz Nichols', 'More From Author', '- July'] Date: 2023-07-18 Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has charged 16 residents in the state in the investigation into a false electors scheme following the 2020 presidential election, including Michigan National Committeewoman Kathy Berden and former Michigan GOP Co-Chair Meshawn Maddock. It is believed that these 16 individuals from all over the state met in the basement of the Michigan Republican Party’s Lansing headquarters on Dec. 14, 2020, following the election where Joe Biden was elected as president, also winning the majority of Michigan voters. At this meeting it is believed that these individuals signed a series of certificates as the “duly elected and qualified electors for President and Vice President of the United States of America for the State of Michigan,” sending false documents to the United States Senate and National Archives saying former President Donald Trump had been reelected. The actual Electoral College slate of 16 Biden electors met at the Michigan Capitol on Dec. 14. Some Republicans — including state Reps. Daire Rendon (R-Lake City) and Matt Maddock (R-Milford), who is married to Meshawn Maddock — tried to enter the building, but were turned away. There is overwhelming evidence against these 16 people, Nessel said in the news release Tuesday. Each is charged with a total of eight felonies: One count of conspiracy to commit forgery, with a max 14-year sentence Two counts of forgery, with a max 14-year sentence One count of conspiracy to commit uttering and publishing, with a max 14-year sentence One count of uttering and publishing, with a max 14-year sentence One count of conspiracy to commit election law forgery, with a max 5-year sentence Two counts of election law forgery, with a max 5-year sentence “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,” said Nessel. Those charged are: Michigan GOP National Committeewoman Kathy Berden, 70, of Snover William (Hank) Choate, 72, of Cement City Amy Facchinello, 55, of Grand Blanc Clifford Frost, 75, of Warren Stanley Grot, 71, of Shelby Township John Haggard, 82, of Charlevoix Mary-Ann Henry, 65, of Brighton Timothy King, 56, of Ypsilanti Michele Lundgren, 73, of Detroit Former Michigan GOP Co-Chair Meshawn Maddock, 55, of Milford James Renner, 76, of Lansing Mayra Rodriguez, 64, of Grosse Pointe Farms Rose Rook, 81, of Paw Paw Marian Sheridan, 69, of West Bloomfield Ken Thompson, 68, of Orleans Kent Vanderwood, 69, of Wyoming Michigan has been a hotspot for Trump’s false claims of mass fraud in the 2020 election stealing the presidency from him. Nessel notes in the news release that Michigan had laid to rest any serious challenges about the integrity of the 2020 election by the time these individuals convened, knowing full well they had no legitimate or legal avenue to reverse the will of the people in the election. “There was only the desperate effort of these defendants, who we have charged with deliberately attempting to interfere with and overturn our free and fair election process, and along with it, the will of millions of Michigan voters,” Nessel said. And though “democracy prevailed” Nessel said, the actions these individuals are accused of are not erased. Each defendant will appear in the 54-A District Court in Ingham County for arraignment. Nessel’s office says it has not ruled out charging more individuals in its investigation. This story was published earlier by the Michigan Advance, an affiliate of the nonprofit States Newsroom network, which includes the Florida Phoenix. [END] --- [1] Url: https://floridaphoenix.com/2023/07/18/16-michigan-republicans-charged-with-felonies-in-2020-fake-elector-scheme/ Published and (C) by Florida Phoenix Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/floridaphoenix/