A Michigan judge has denied a petition to block the certification of the 2020 election results in the heavily Democratic county that is home to Detroit, another legal setback for the Trump campaign, which has similar cases in several states.
The Michigan lawsuit, brought by two Republican poll challengers who leveled unfounded allegations of fraud -- not the campaign itself -- had also sought an independent audit of the election, which the judge also rejected.
The campaign did, however, attach this entire lawsuit as evidence of fraud in its own lawsuit filed in the state this week. It is not clear how this will affect their case, which a judge has yet to hear.
Chief Judge Timothy M. Kenny described the plaintiff’s "interpretation" of events on Election Day as "incorrect and not credible."
(MORE: Trump team and Pennsylvania election officials clash in federal court filings)In his ruling, Kenny took issue with a string of affidavits presented as evidence in the case – similar to those filed in Pennsylvania -- in which several poll challengers allege they witnessed numerous activities of fraudulent behavior during the counting process.
"Plaintiffs rely on numerous affidavits from election challengers who paint a picture of sinister fraudulent activities occurring both openly in the TCF Center and under the cloak of darkness," Kenny writes, noting that those claims were "decidedly contradicted" by an election expert put forth by the defense.
At latest count, President-elect Joe Biden leads President Trump in Michigan by more than 148,000 votes.
In a not-so-subtle slap on the wrist, Kenny suggested the challengers should have attended the training session in October, so they could have known what they were witnessing during the counting process was standard practice.
"Regrettably, they did not and, therefore, [those who filed affidavits] did not have a full understanding of the … ballot tabulation process."