The Trump campaign has withdrawn its federal lawsuit in Michigan after achieving the “relief” it sought, Rudy Giuliani announced.
The Thursday pullout was announced in a statement attributable to Trump’s personal attorney, Giuliani, who has taken a leading role in the campaign’s legal barnstorm following the Nov. 3 election.
“This morning, we are withdrawing our lawsuit in Michigan as a direct result of achieving the relief we sought: to stop the election in Wayne County from being prematurely certified before residents can be assured that every legal vote has been counted and every illegal vote has not been counted,” he said.
According to court documents, the Trump campaign voluntarily dismissed the federal lawsuit on Thursday morning. In the motion, campaign lawyer Mark “Thor” Hearne cites the move by Wayne County Board of Canvassers Chairwoman Monica Palmer and William Hartmann to rescind their support for certifying the election results in Wayne County, where the Democratic stronghold of Detroit is located.
The Trump campaign’s motion to withdraw includes sworn affidavits signed by Palmer and Hartmann. The board was initially deadlocked 2-2 with Palmer and Hartmann, the two Republicans on the board, voting to oppose certification and the two Democrats on the board voting in favor. After the deadlock, the two Republicans faced an intense public comment period where they were accused of racism and repeatedly insulted. Hours later they voted to certify with the demand that the state conduct an audit of precincts with out-of-balance poll books.
Palmer got a personal phone call from President Trump after the vote, and Hartmann was also reportedly contacted, according to the Detroit Free Press.
In their affidavits, the duo said they don’t believe that the state intends to carry through with the board’s request for an audit and claimed that they wouldn’t have voted to certify had they known the request would not be carried out.
It appears a new legal battle may be brewing in Michigan given that Tracy Wimmer, a spokeswoman for Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, told the Washington Examiner on Thursday that there is “no legal mechanism” for the two to rescind their votes to certify.
“Their job is done and the next step in the process is for the Board of State Canvassers to meet and certify,” she said in a statement.
Much of the Trump campaign’s focus has been on Wayne County, where the campaign alleges instances of irregularities and election fraud. The original lawsuit had contained dozens of sworn affidavits from GOP poll challengers who claimed to have witnessed electoral malfeasance at the TCF Center in Detroit, where the county’s absentee ballots were tabulated.
