Jocelyn Benson is the 2018 Democratic candidate for Michigan Secretary of State
HOLLAND — From her beginnings at the Southern Poverty Law Center, Jocelyn Benson has always been committed to addressing voting rights issues and protecting democracy.
Benson, the 2018 Democratic candidate for Michigan Secretary of State, spoke at an event hosted by the Ottawa County Democratic Party at City Vu in downtown Holland on Monday evening, May 21.
“I was instilled with this deep commitment to address voting rights and democracy work in our country,” Benson said. “There has been so much work done to protect the vote and there is still so much work to be done.”
From Benson’s perspective, the secretary of state oversees two very important issues for Michigan residents: voting and driving.
Her campaign is based on increasing efficiency at secretary of state offices to ensure no Michigan resident has to wait more than 30 minutes to get their driver’s license, register their vehicle, cast a ballot or get other services.
The first step in cutting down wait times will be to collect data to see which branches are struggling, then implementing best practices across the state.
Employees from efficient branches could be used to train less efficient branches and there are ways to decrease the frequency residents have to come to secretary of state offices, Benson said.
Banning driver fee increases, ensuring secure elections, protecting the right to vote for all citizens and increasing ethics and transparency in the state are the four other pillars of Benson’s campaign.
In 2008, Benson traveled around the country talking to secretaries of state and documenting best practices. Then she authored a book called “State Secretaries of State: Guardians of the Democratic Process” with her findings.
“I really saw how much we could do in Michigan we weren’t doing,” Benson said. “I really wanted to be a part of bringing those ideas to Michigan and making us a leader in fair and accountable government.”
Benson ran for Michigan Secretary of State in 2010, but was defeated by current Secretary of State and Republican Ruth Johnson, who cannot run in 2018 because of term limits.
Benson is the only Democrat vying for the secretary of state position in 2018, however she will face one of three Republican candidates and Libertarian candidate Gregory Stempfle in the Nov. 6 general election.
Republicans Stan Grot, Joseph Guzman and Mary Treder Lang will square off for the Republican nomination at a party convention in August.
Benson said her experience as dean of Wayne State University Law School will lend itself to the secretary of state position.
“I learned how to run a public institution and built a track record of getting things done,” Benson said.
Benson’s experience as a military wife solidified her decision to run for secretary of state in 2018, she said.
In 2012, her husband was deployed in Afghanistan and his ballot was returned undeliverable. Benson said if she lived in a different state with different voting laws there were steps she could have taken to ensure his ballot counted.
“No one in Michigan, a veteran, service member or family member, should ever feel like their vote doesn’t count,” Benson said.
The next secretary of state in Michigan needs to emphasize voting access, but also election security, Benson said.
“We need to make it easier to vote and harder to cheat,” Benson said. “In everything we do to increase access to the vote we need to increase security of the vote.”
Michigan is falling behind when it comes to voter access, Benson said.
In other states voters don’t need a reason to vote absentee, can vote early on Saturday or Sunday before Election Day and can register to vote online instead of sending in paperwork, she said.
“We have a lot of ways we can modernize the election process here in Michigan and also increase the security,” Benson said. “The 2016 election showed us there are very real threats to the security of our elections we need to stay on top.”
Benson would like to implement post-election audits on random voting machines to ensure ballots are counted accurately
“My vision is to take Michigan from worst to first in how we run our elections,” Bensin said. “It’s about competent government running well for all of our citizens.”
— Follow this reporter on Twitter @SentinelJake.