A Chinese student at the University of Michigan was charged on Wednesday after he allegedly voted early on Sunday despite his non-citizen status, according to The Detroit News, which added that the Chinese national’s vote will still be counted.
Michigan Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and the Washtenaw County Prosecutor’s office revealed two charges against the 19-year-old student, who was not identified, in a statement on Wednesday. While the Chinese national is in the U.S. legally with a Green Card, he is not a U.S. citizen, but according to the secretary of state’s office, the Chinese student successfully obtained a ballot and cast his vote at an early voting location.
The Chinese student reportedly contacted the local clerk’s office after voting and asked if he could get his ballot back. The Detroit News reported that “two sources familiar with Michigan election laws” said election officials cannot retrieve the illegally cast ballot after it went through a tabulator, a rule that prevents ballots from being tracked back to specific voters.
Michigan’s voter ID law allows people to show a current “student photo ID card from an educational institution.” The law also allows people to sign “an affidavit attesting that they are not in possession of photo identification.” Michigan is a vital battleground state in the upcoming election and has been a major focus of the campaigns of both former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris.
The Chinese student was charged with perjury — making a false statement on an affidavit for the purpose of securing voter registration — and being an unauthorized elector who attempted to vote, according to The Detroit News. Attempting to vote as an unauthorized elector is punishable by up to four years in prison while perjury can result in up to 15 years in prison.
“We’re grateful for the swift action of the clerk in this case, who took the appropriate steps and referred the case to law enforcement,” Benson and Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit said in a joint statement. “We are also grateful to law enforcement for swiftly and thoroughly investigating this case.”
“Anyone who attempts to vote illegally faces significant consequences, including but not limited to arrest and prosecution,” the statement added.
In a message from Ann Arbor, Michigan, City Administrator Milton Dohoney Jr. to city council members, Doheney Jr. said that it appears “the student was fully aware of what he was doing, and that it was not legal.”
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“Through a series of actions, the student was apparently able to register, receive a ballot and cast a vote,” Dohoney wrote. “Based upon the scenario that we’re hearing this morning, the student was fully aware of what he was doing, and that it was not legal.”
On Wednesday, Benson blasted people who have been questioning the security of the upcoming election.
“We know adversaries to democracy right now are trying to create chaos and confusion and sow seeds of distrust around our very clear and legitimate and accurate and secure processes of running elections, not just in Michigan, but around the country,” she told CBS News’ “Face The Nation.”
Here’s Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson claiming Michigan’s voting systems are “secure.” pic.twitter.com/YgDYnzocMj
— RedWave Press (@RedWave_Press) October 30, 2024
