Absentee Ballots Still Being Counted Across Michigan: SOS

MICHIGAN — Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said "every vote will count" in Michigan, where clerks worked through the night counting ballots, with "hundreds of thousands" of ballots still to be tallied.

"Hundreds of thousands of ballots in our largest jurisdictions are still being counted, including Detroit, Grand Rapids, Flint, Warren & Sterling Heights," Benson said on Twitter. "Every vote will count.

On Tuesday, Benson said election results in Michigan could be known by Wednesday night. That's despite a large number of absentee ballots that election officials were unable to begin counting until Election Day.

In a news conference held at Ford Field in Detroit, Benson said officials will likely be able to have all ballots counted earlier than expected. Benson and her office said earlier in the week that results could take until Friday to be completely counted.

"To me, the winner is democracy today," Benson said. "I don't mean to sound trite or cheesy, it's just it's true."

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Benson said more than 3.3 million absentee ballots had been received in Michigan, and that officials expect about 2.5 million people to have voted in person on Tuesday. Those numbers, Benson said, are still being calculated.

Over 28,000 people registered to vote on Election Day and then submitted a ballot. Many of them, Benson said, were in the Detroit, Ann Arbor and Grand Rapids areas.

Benson credited local clerks with being patient in registering people to vote on a busy Election Day.

"It's a testament to voters throughout the state that so many were able to participate and the clerks that made that all happen," she said.

Read More: Real Time Michigan Presidential Election Results: Trump Leads

Benson said she expects Tuesday's turnout numbers to break state records.

But Election Day in Michigan didn't go off without some glitches. In Ferndale, some voters were delayed due to an issue with their respective polling place being opened on time.

In Flint and Dearborn, scams targeting voters attempted to mislead them regarding Election Day practices, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said.

Nessel said in social media posts that text messages had been distributed warning Dearborn residents of issues at the ballots. But the texts were false, Nessel said, and should not be listened to.

"Dearborn voters, text messages are reportedly being sent to trick you into thinking there are ballot sensor issues," she said. "Do not fall for it, it's a trick!"

Nessel also said alerts surfaced regarding robocalls suggesting to some Flint voters that due to long lines, they should vote Wednesday. That, of course, is not true, she explained.

"Obviously this is FALSE and an effort to suppress the vote," Nessel said on Twitter. "No long lines and today is the last day to vote. Don't believe the lies! Have your voice heard!"