What to know today 🌅
2020 election ‘most secure in American history’
The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued a statement Thursday claiming the 2020 presidential election was “the most secure” election “in American history.”
Together with the Election Infrastructure Government Coordinating Council, U.S. Election Assistance Commission, National Association of Secretaries of State, National Association of State Election Directors and the members of the Election Infrastructure Sector Coordinating Council, CISA issued the following statement Thursday:
"The November 3rd election was the most secure in American history. Right now, across the country, election officials are reviewing and double checking the entire election process prior to finalizing the result.
"When states have close elections, many will recount ballots. All of the states with close results in the 2020 presidential race have paper records of each vote, allowing the ability to go back and count each ballot if necessary. This is an added benefit for security and resilience. This process allows for the identification and correction of any mistakes or errors. There is no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes, or was in any way compromised.
"Other security measures like pre-election testing, state certification of voting equipment, and the U.S. Election Assistance Commission’s (EAC) certification of voting equipment help to build additional confidence in the voting systems used in 2020.
“While we know there are many unfounded claims and opportunities for misinformation about the process of our elections, we can assure you we have the utmost confidence in the security and integrity of our elections, and you should too. When you have questions, turn to elections officials as trusted voices as they administer elections.”
CISA, an agency that operates under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, made the announcement as President Donald Trump’s campaign for reelection initiates several legal battles over election security and voter fraud throughout the country.
The agency’s statement directly contradicts the rhetoric being pushed by Trump and his campaign, which alleges rampant voter fraud occurred throughout the U.S.
Read more here from Cassidy Johncox’s report.
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Five fatal Friday the 13th occurrences
We’ve all had our own superstitions growing up.
Sometimes it was about a specific pair of pajamas that you were confident would bring a snow day the following morning, or maybe it’s a Sergei Fedorov jersey that you refuse to wash since you wore it during all Stanley Cup playoff games in the 1997-98 season. Maybe you washed that jersey last season. Maybe you shouldn’t have done that.
Coronavirus in Michigan 🦠
The number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in Michigan has risen to 236,225 as of Thursday, including 7,811 deaths, state officials report.
Thursday’s update represents a one-day record of 6,940 new cases and 45 new deaths.
New COVID-19 cases and deaths continue to rise in Michigan. Testing has increased in recent weeks, with more than 45,000 diagnostic tests reported per day, but the positive rate has increased to above 11% over the last week. Hospitalizations have increased steadily for the last five weeks, including upticks in critical care and ventilator use.
Michigan’s 7-day moving average for daily cases was 5,313 on Wednesday, the highest it has ever been. The 7-day death average was 46, the highest since early June. The state’s fatality rate is 3.4%. The state also reports “active cases,” which were listed at 92,600 on Wednesday, its highest mark on record. More than 128,000 have recovered in Michigan.
Here’s a look at more of the data: