Issue Brief: Anti-democratic Activity and Conflict Drivers in Macomb County Following Charges Against “Fake Electors”

While overall mobilization in Macomb County has declined since the spike following the murder of George Floyd, 2020 saw notable instances of contention in the county including at least 2 demonstrations with armed or paramilitary actors and several instances of police intervention. At least one other Shelby Township Trustee, John Vermeulen, has a history of problematic behavior, including posting perceived racist Facebook posts and posting in support of far-right figures who have promoted election fraud narratives and called for violence. Additionally, the Macomb County GOP Chair Mark Forton has continued to push and show support for election fraud narratives since the charges were announced. Multiple county and state political and party officials issued inflammatory response statements, largely focused on characterizing the charges as an “abuse of power” aimed at “prosecuting political dissidents. While these statements have been shared across online election-denier networks, we have not seen any explicit calls for mobilization to date.