When the Republican National Committee requested absentee drop box surveillance footage from the City of Detroit, the city asked for an extension — then said the footage had been deleted, according to a new lawsuit from the RNC. The party is now suing the city.

“Deleting drop box surveillance footage while there is a pending FOIA request for it is an assault on transparency,” RNC Chair Michael Whatley said in a press release. “This breach of trust is exactly what reduces confidence in our elections.”

The RNC sued the Detroit Department of Elections on Oct. 15, claiming it had violated the Michigan Freedom of Information Act by allowing the requested drop box video to be deleted. The RNC is requesting an injunction to make the city retain election drop box surveillance.

“With the election underway, there is a real and imminent [danger] of irreparable injury that more video surveillance records of drop boxes will be destroyed after a timely FOIA request is received,” the suit reads.

The party was requesting surveillance of a drop box at Wayne County Community College following the state’s Aug. 6 primary. The city asked for a 10-business-day extension to the Aug. 20 request, then replied that the footage had been automatically deleted after 30 days. The RNC claims its request was received 16 days before the video was set to be deleted.

The lawsuit cited a 2019 Detroit executive order that said record “retention is required, even if otherwise authorized by a schedule, if a FOIA request has been received …” 

“Justice requires that the Department of Elections abide by the FOIA and maintain public records …” the suit reads. The RNC is asking the court to find Detroit “arbitrarily and capriciously violated the FOIA by destroying the video surveillance records” and order the city to pay attorneys’ fees and fines. 

“We will hold Detroit accountable, as this secrecy has no place in a fair and secure election — Michiganders deserve far better,” Whatley said in the release. 

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Logan Washburn is a staff writer covering election integrity. He graduated from Hillsdale College, served as Christopher Rufo's editorial assistant, and has bylines in The Wall Street Journal, The Tennessean, and The Daily Caller. Logan is originally from Central Oregon but now lives in rural Michigan.