Secretary Benson statement on protecting personal information of Michiganders who signed up to be election workers

Secretary Benson statement on protecting personal information of Michiganders who signed up to be election workers
On July 31, the Michigan Department of State responded to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request from the Republican National Committee (RNC) seeking the private, personal information of Michigan citizens who signed up to be election workers through the department’s longstanding Democracy MVP program. This nationally recognized program has successfully recruited Michiganders across the political spectrum to serve as election workers across the state. Since its launch in 2020, tens of thousands of Michiganders from multiple political parties have used the program to sign up to serve as election workers in their communities. Local clerks have the option to use this expanded central pool of volunteers to hire election workers and help ensure bipartisan balance in their polling places. Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson made the following statement in response to the RNC's request:

“In Michigan, voters’ privacy is paramount. And as Michigan’s Secretary of State, I will protect the private information of Michigan citizens from misuse and abuse, including partisan attempts to target Michiganders based on their party affiliation and willingness to serve as poll workers.  

"Our response to the RNC’s FOIA provides available information responsive to their inquiry. It also redacts personal and private information of citizens who signed up to serve their communities to protect them from potential threats or harassment.  

"As always, we welcome requests for information about Michigan’s secure, fair and accurate elections. We draw the line, however, at sharing anything private that someone could use to threaten, bully, doxx or harass the bipartisan professionals who administer them."

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