CHARLOTTE, Mich. — Former Vice President Mike Pence sidestepped a question Friday on whether people should have faith in Tuesday's election by saying he was "disappointed" Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer vetoed voting proposals advanced by Republican lawmakers.
Four days before the pivotal midterm election, Pence, a Republican who served with former President Donald Trump, participated in a rally at the Country Mill orchard in Eaton County on behalf of GOP candidate Tom Barrett, a state senator from Charlotte who's challenging U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., for her seat in Congress.
"I've been very proud of the fact that in the wake a very divisive election in 2020, states around the country have enacted election reforms that have really strengthened public confidence in our election process," Pence told reporters after the event. "I am disappointed that here in Michigan as Republicans, along with Tom Barrett, passed legislation that would strengthen election integrity (and) Gov. Gretchen Whitmer vetoed that legislation.
"It's one of the reasons when I called Tudor Dixon today I was urging her on and congratulating her on a great race."
Dixon, a political commentator, is the Republican challenging Whitmer, a Democrat, in Tuesday's election. A Whitmer spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment Friday.
After the 2020 election, Trump made unsubstantiated claims he lost to Democrat Joe Biden because of fraud. Pence drew criticism from Trump and some of the ex-president's supporters for not blocking the certification of the 2020 results as he presided over a joint session of Congress on Jan. 6, 2021, hours after rioters gained access to the Capitol and temporarily halted the proceedings.
In the wake of the election — Trump lost Michigan by 154,000 votes or 3 percentage points — Republicans who control the Michigan Legislature introduced dozens of bill to alter state election laws, targeting areas like absentee ballots and voter qualifications. Many of the proposals were vetoed by Whitmer, including bills that would have expanded identification requirements for in-person voters and absentee ballot voters.
Whitmer argued the bills would weaken voting rights and were attempts to "perpetuate the big lie," the false claim that the 2020 election was fraudulent.
Pence campaigned in Michigan on behalf of Barrett and U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Mich., in separate events on Friday. During his stop with Barrett, Pence touted achievements of the Trump administration and said "the path to a Republican majority" in the U.S. House goes through Michigan's 7th District, where Slotkin is the incumbent.
Pence described Barrett as "pro-family, pro-life," strong on national defense and in favor of free enterprise.
"He'll be a voice for freedom the day he arrives on Capitol Hill," Pence said of Barrett.
The race between Barrett and Slotkin has been ranked among the most expensive in the country, with both sides having spent millions of dollars on TV ads. Barrett and Slotkin have clashed over foreign policy at times during the race as Barrett, an Iraq war veteran, has tried to paint his opponent as an "establishment war hawk."
In a statement ahead of Pence's stop, Lynsey Mukomel, spokeswoman for Slotkin's campaign, said Barrett had been showing he "holds extreme, alarming views."
"Whether it’s voting against abortion access, against public schools, against prescription drug reform or against thousands of good-paying auto jobs, Barrett has and will always put his ideology before his duty to constituents," Mukomel said.
During the rally, Pence briefly referenced the U.S. Supreme Court's June decision to strike down Roe v. Wade, a 1973 ruling that had protected access to abortion nationally. The court had given "Americans a new beginning on the right to life," Pence said.
Pence drew applause from the crowd at Country Mill on Friday. About 100 people attended the event.
(Staff writers Beth LeBlanc and Hayley Harding contributed.)
