Michigan election officials ordered to start recount today

Deadline is Dec. 13

DETROIT – A U.S. District judge has approved Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein's request for a temporary restraining order to accelerate the recount of presidential votes in Michigan.

VIEW: All Michigan Recount headlines

The announcement was made overnight Sunday after a 10:30 a.m. hearing at the federal court building in Detroit. The recount will begin at noon Monday. The deadline to have it finished is Dec. 13, which is next Tuesday.

The Secretary of State's office said Ingham and Oakland counties will begin the recount at noon Monday.

VIEW: Michigan recount schedule by county

VIEW: Michigan GOP on recount ruling: 'We are outraged' 

Stein filed a federal lawsuit Friday to try to force Michigan to conduct a recount. The move came hours after President-elect Donald Trump filed a lawsuit asking the state Supreme Court to intervene and stop Stein's request for a recount.

Will Michigan be forced to do a hand recount of its 4.8 million votes? The Board of State Canvassers, which makes the call, is made up of two Democrats and two Republicans. They deadlocked along party lines Friday, which meant the recount would proceed.

But then the lawsuits started flying.

Trump's legal team sued the state's elections director, and the Board of State Canvassers claimed Stein does not have legal standing to force a recount.

Meanwhile, Stein sued the same elections officials, demanding that the recount proceed.

"Jill Stein’s lack of preparation is becoming everyone else’s cost and emergency," said Michigan Republican Party Chairman Romney McDaniel in a statement. "Donald Trump won Michigan. Jill Stein is trying to call our results into question, throwing human error, fraud, and chaos into our process at a cost of millions of dollars to our taxpayers. The Michigan Republican Party will continue to fight on behalf of Michigan taxpayers to end this worthless recount which will cost Michigan taxpayers millions."

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About the Authors:

Derick is the Lead Digital Editor for ClickOnDetroit and has been with Local 4 News since April 2013. Derick specializes in breaking news, crime and local sports.

Priya joined WDIV-Local 4 in 2013 as a reporter and fill-in anchor. Education: B.A. in Communications/Post Grad in Advanced Journalism