The Michigan Supreme Court Tuesday issued an order that denied plaintiff’s leave for appeal in William Bailey v. Antrim County. The court said it was “not persuaded that the questions presented should be reviewed by this Court.” Instead, the court held that “the Court of Appeals properly rejected plaintiff’s argument that he has a right to conduct an independent audit of election results.”

The district court stated that Michigan’s Constitution does not allow for the independent audit that Bailey requested. The court stated he did not get to pick his own audit criteria. Rather, the trial court stated, audits are to be conducted according to the law. Because an audit had already been conducted, Bailey’s case was dismissed. The appellate court affirmed.

After the Supreme Court’s order, Michigan Attorney General, Dana Nessel, stated:

This order is the final word in this case on the legitimacy and accuracy of our elections.  These fraudulent claims were utilized to undermine the electorate’s faith in our system of elections not just in Michigan, but nationwide.  Not a single member of the Court believed the claims made by the Plaintiff or his counsel were worthy of consideration.  Let this be the nail in the coffin for the specious claims made during the course of this case.

The plaintiff, William Bailey, claimed that his county’s electronic voting machines fraudulently counted votes that were cast for former President Donald Trump in favor of current President Joe Biden. Initially, the election results showed Biden with 7,769 votes and Trump with 4,509 votes. At Bailey’s request, the county clerk reverified the results twice and the new total showed Biden received 5,960 votes and Trump received 9,748 votes. Based on these fluctuating results, Bailey requested the court to audit the election results.

Tuesday’s decision brings an end to Bailey’s legal challenges in the state.