Many questions have been raised about the November election that expose weaknesses and faults in our current election system. I previously announced a top-to-bottom investigation, but it appears it will take longer than initially anticipated and will require more manpower to complete.

To restore full integrity and trust in elections, we have decided to change direction. On Friday, I named Justice Gableman as Special Counsel and gave him additional authority and independence to hire more full-time investigators who will work at his direction.

After talking with our original investigative team, we realized that the part-time nature of these contracts would not allow for the amount of time needed to complete the investigation. Justice Gableman will have the resources and ability to determine the need for any future adjustments.

Through this investigation, we aim to ensure there is confidence that every vote will be counted and laws concerning future elections will be faithfully and uniformly followed.

We hope to complete this thorough investigation in the fall and review the findings at the same time we receive results from the nonpartisan Legislative Audit Bureau, which is currently conducting a statewide, multi-faceted forensic audit.