Just this past Monday, a court in Michigan sentenced the former clerk of Flint Township, Kathy Funk, to spend a total of six months serving out a house arrest sentence.
This happened because of Funk pulling the seal off of a ballot box during the 2020 election. It had been Funk’s intention all along to avoid a recount. Additional sanctions, such as electronic monitoring and an apology to the general public, were imposed upon Funk, who is a Democrat.
Michigan official Democrat Kathy Funk gets house arrest for 2020 ballot sabotagehttps://t.co/HR792jnhOg pic.twitter.com/ZxVJC7uMgG
— The Washington Times (@WashTimes) April 24, 2023
Slight Margin
According to their investigations, Funk won the Democratic nomination with a margin of just 79 votes out of roughly 5,300 cast.
Since there was no request for a recount, she was declared the winner. Though she’s being blamed for tarnishing the ballot box so the primary votes can’t be recounted.
Funk initially disputed involvement and blamed a broken seal on the ballot canister on someone else breaking into the township hall. Later, at sentencing, she entered a plea of no contest for misconduct in office, which does not constitute a confession of guilt.
A local official in Michigan accused of breaking a seal on a ballot box in her own election to ensure that votes couldn’t be recounted was sentenced to six months of house arrest. Kathy Funk, a Democrat, must wear an electronic monitor and also write a public apology, pic.twitter.com/QUiyV5LEkj
— Carlos Perez (@CarlosP95095856) April 25, 2023
Funk was chastised by Judge Mark Latchana at her sentence for her initial account of a break-in, with the judge adding she should be locked up for questioning the integrity of an election.
Perhaps it would be the case if they had an infinite amount of prison cells. They don’t, though.
A Step Up
Funk, 59, served as Genesee County’s new elections supervisor, located about 60 miles north of Detroit. She left her township position in 2021 to take on this one. Though last year, while her criminal case was still ongoing, she was fired from her position.
The case illustrates both the seriousness of interfering with election results and the critical importance of protecting the honesty of voting processes. The faith of voters and their trust in the political process has been severely damaged as a direct result of Funk’s activities.
This article appeared in The Political Globe and has been published here with permission.
