A months-long investigation by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel‘s (D) office into improper access to voting machines during the 2020 election led to it asking over the weekend for a special prosecutor to open a probe into her Trump-backed opponent in the upcoming November election.
Nessel’s office found that lawyer and political newcomer Matthew DePerno (R) may have been a “prime instigator of the conspiracy,” according to the petition written by Danielle Hagaman-Clark, who is the chief of the Attorney General’s criminal trials and appeals division.
Nessel’s office has been working with the Michigan State Police for months to find out more about voting machine breaches. The investigation found that five tabulators were accessed by unauthorized people in multiple counties and that DePerno was tied to efforts to raise questions around the election, which former President Donald Trumplost to President Joe Biden.
Since there is a possible conflict of interest if DePerson becomes the Republican nominee for state attorney general as suspected, Nessel requested a special prosecutor. That wasn’t enough for DePerno’s camp, however, as they accused her of “targeting” her challenger.
Nessel has a “history of targeting and persecuting her political enemies,” DePerno’s campaign manager, Tyson Shepard, wrote in a statement on Sunday night in response to Nessel’s request.
“Dana Nessel knows she is losing this race,” Shepard added. “She is desperate to win this election at all costs and is now targeting DePerno, her political opponent. Her actions are unethical and will further demonstrate to the voters that she is unfit for office.”
