Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson brightened the prospects of Vice President Kamala Harris Friday when she removed rival leftist candidate Cornel West from the November ballot.

Mark Brewer, a former chairman of the Michigan Democratic Party, filed a complaint with Benson, a Democrat angling to run for governor in 2026 and self-declared “Democracy Defender,” alleging West did not submit a proper affidavit of identity.

In late July, Brewer teamed up with Rosa Holliday, an activist for Clear Choice Action, a PAC aimed at pushing third-party candidates off the ballot to file a complaint with the Board of State Canvassers alleging West’s qualifying petitions were “rife with forged signatures,” Michigan Advance reported.

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Benson instead removed West over a technicality with the affidavit of identity.

Clear Choice Action also contended West campaign circulators forged other petitions in the past, and used tactics similar to circulators involved in rejected petitions that sank Republican gubernatorial candidates and ballot measures in 2022, WDET reported.

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West’s campaign submitted more than double the required signatures to appear on the ballot, and could survive the challenge that entails a random review of about 750 signatures, with fewer than half required to be valid, WDET reported.

Benson didn’t like that West’s notary was in Colorado and that the “notarization attempt by Dana L. Manning does not conform with Colorado law”.

West’s removal is significant in that Donald Trump was leading Kamala Harris by two points — 45% to 43% — in a recent AARP poll that included West. A head-to-head match-up — without third-party candidates — Trump and Harris are tied, each with 48%.

Michigan Democrats have tried to use the similar tactics in attempts to block former President Donald Trump and Natural Law Party candidate Robert F. Kennedy from appearing on the ballot this election.

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In April, Clear Choice partnered with former Michigan Democratic Party chairman Mark Brewer to challenge Kennedy’s access just days after he was approved for the ballot.

That challenge followed another failed effort to block former President Donald Trump last year.

The Michigan Supreme Court in December rejected Democrats’ argument Trump should be disqualified from appearing on the state’s primary ballot under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, which prohibits anyone who has “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” from holding public office.

In March, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously restored Trump to 2024 presidential primary ballots, ending efforts in Colorado, Illinois, Maine, and elsewhere to remove him.

West was making a play for Muslims and Arabs unhappy with the Biden administration’s support for Israel. He campaigned in Dearborn attempting to attract progressives who would not support Biden or Harris.

Benson’s action will now require those disaffected voters to choose between Trump and Harris.