We're less than a week from the election, and one of the most hotly-contested statewide races is the one for attorney general.

Incumbent Democrat Dana Nessel is being challenged by Republican nominee Matt DePerno, and polls have been showing the race tightening.

Both candidates sat down with me to talk about the big issues and what they believe is at stake.

"What wins do you point to that indicates to voters that you're ready and deserve a second term? Because there have been some losses as well recently, the Flint water crisis being the most recent," I asked Nessel.

"Well, first of all, you know, you show me a lawyer that's never lost a case and I'm going to show you a lawyer that's never done anything consequential in their entire lives. We have brought so many cases at the Department of Attorney General in the last four years and so many great success stories," she said.

Nessel cites a slew of cases as proof of first-term success, including an $800 million settlement against opioid manufacturers and distributors, $2 billion in savings from the utility rate hike intervention, and seven convictions in the clergy abuse scandal. She also points to new initiatives, like creating a hate crimes and domestic terrorism unit.

We have white supremacists and domestic terrorists that are right now in the Michigan Department of Corrections who had plans to blow up grocery stores and churches and synagogues," Nessel said. "So we have had win after win after win."

I asked DePerno why Nessel should not get a second term.

"Well, she's proven over the last four years that she puts politics over victims. We have the highest crime rate in the state right now than we've seen in decades," he said.

"Is there a specific example that you can point to of politics over victims?" I asked.

"Yeah, sure. There is the lawsuit she filed in federal court in Grand Rapids, where she specifically targeted Catholic organizations and adoption procedures. The federal judge in that case told Dana Nessel to stop weaponizing her office," he responded.

DePerno clinched his nomination, in part, on the support of former President Donald Trump, for his questioning and challenging of the 2020 election results.

"What specifically is it about our election process that leads you to believe that there could be large-scale fraud?" I asked.

"Well, we know what happened in the 2020 election. Jocelyn Benson sent out pre-filled absentee ballot applications in violation of the law. A court later determined that that was unconstitutional," he said. "She also told clerks across the state to ignore signature verification requirements that was unconstitutional and illegal. It's the absentee ballot application process right now that doesn't match up with the qualified voter roll that needs to be fixed," he said.

"And is that large enough of a scale that would've changed the 2020 result?" I asked.

"Well, we don't know, do we? All I did was take a look at Antrim County and we saw significant problems in that county, but the Democrats stopped us from looking statewide. So what's wrong with looking?" he said.

A Michigan Court of Appeals ruled Benson was within her rights to mail out the absentee ballots to all voters, but according to investigators, DePerno's looking may have been criminal.

A special prosecutor from Muskegon is reviewing allegations that he illegally accessed voting machines in Antrim County.

"How do you think that your active legal issues weigh on voters right now? Specifically, the accusations that you are alleged to have illegally accessed voting machine equipment?" I asked.

"Well, first, we didn't illegally access anything. We had a court order from the Antrim County Court to examine the Antrim County voting system and look at 22 separate tabulators. But it's a distraction. It is a huge distraction that the voters have to deal with," he said.

The investigation is why Nessel said she's declined to debate DePerno, since the case was referred to her office by Michigan State Police before.

"I can't prosecute my opponent. That's not ethically responsible. So we gave it to the Prosecuting Attorney's Association of Michigan. They referred it to a special prosecutor," Nessel said. "But, if this comes up during the course of a debate, I can't even discuss the details of it. And so it's like going into a boxing match with one hand tied behind my back."

During a gubernatorial debate, Nessel herself was accused of not following the law.

"You were accused of skirting the law by the Republican nominee. You have said previously that you would not prosecute for folks that go through with abortions, correct? How is that not picking and choosing which laws to prosecute and which ones to not?" I asked.

"First of all, when I took an oath for this office, I took an oath to ensure that I was protecting the health, the safety and the welfare of people around this state. And that includes the 2.2 million women of reproductive age. It does not serve the interests of our state to take women and their doctors and their nurses and put them in jail or prison for a medical procedure that has been legal in this state and in this country for 50 years now. I have prosecutorial discretion. There's a lot of types of laws that are routinely not enforced, but they're on the books. I don't enforce adultery laws, for instance. They're on the books. Should I?" she said.

When I asked if DePerno would accept the results of the election, he deflected.

"I'm going to win, so obviously I'll accept the results," he said.

"And if you don't?" I responded.

"Well, I'm going to win. So I'll accept the results," he responded.

You can view both of their entire interviews below.

Our Brian Abel sat down one-on-one with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who is seeking a second term against Republican candidate Tudor Dixon.

They talked about why Whitmer thinks she deserves a second term, proposal 3 looking to allow abortion rights in Michigan, no-fault insurance, COVID-19 restrictions and more.

Watch their interview in the video player above

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Our Brian Abel sat down one-on-one with Republican Attorney General Candidate Matt DePerno ahead of the election.

He is looking to unseat Democrat Attorney General Dana Nessel, who is seeking a second term.

They talked all about why DePerno thinks he should get elected, things Nessel has said in the past, following the laws on the books and more.

Watch their interview in the video player above

Related:

Our Brian Abel sat down one-on-one with Attorney General Dana Nessel, who is seeking a second term against Republican candidate Matt DePerno.

They talked all about why Nessel thinks she should get a second term, her work on the Flint Water Crisis, the future of election integrity in Michigan and much more.

Watch their interview in the video player above

Related

Our Brett Kast sat down with Rep. Elissa Slotkin, who is running in MI's 7th Congressional District against Republican State Sen. Tom Barrett. They spoke about inflation, abortion, the auto industry and more.

The race is one of the tightest in the country and is bringing in millions of dollars from outside organizations.

Watch her interview in the video player above.

Related:

Our Brett Kast sat down with Republican State Sen. Tom Barrett, who is running in MI's 7th Congressional District against Democratic incumbent Rep. Elissa Slotkin.

They spoke about inflation, abortion, the auto industry and more.

The race is one of the tightest in the country and is bringing in millions of dollars from outside organizations.

Watch his interview in the video player above.

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Our Brett Kast sat down with Democrat Carl Marlinga, who is running for Congress in Michigan's new 10th Congressional District. He's facing off against Republican John James.

They spoke about rising inflation, abortion in the country, taxes, guns, violence and more.

Watch his interview in the video player above

Related:

Our Brett Kast sat down with Republican John James, who is running for Congress in Michigan's new 10th Congressional District. He's facing off against Democrat Carl Marlinga.

They spoke about rising inflation, abortion in the country, taxes, guns, violence and more.

Watch his interview in the video player above

Related:

Our Brett Kast sat down with Republican Mark Ambrose, who is running in Michigan's 11th Congressional District against incumbent Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens. They spoke about inflation, abortion, the auto industry and more.

Watch his interview in the video player above

Related:

Our Brett Kast sat down with Rep. Haley Stevens, who is running in Michigan's 11th Congressional District against Republican Mark Ambrose. They spoke about inflation, abortion, the auto industry and more.

Watch her full interview above

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With time ticking down until Election Day, we are taking in-depth looks on what youll be voting on from candidates to ballot proposals.

The first is on Proposal 1.

Heres the language of the proposed amendment, what it will change, and who is for and against it.

When you go to vote, this is the first proposal you'll see: 22-1.

Rich Studley is with the coalition behind the proposal Voters For Transparency & Term Limits.

It is a straightforward amendment to the state constitution that does two things. One, Michigan is one of only two states in the country that fails to have any financial disclosure requirements for state lawmakers and state officers, he says. If Proposal One is approved, the legislature would be required to enact a law next year, a very detailed and specific law to require complete financial disclosure.

The other part of Proposal One is to reduce the total number of years a politician can stay in the legislature from 14 to 12. You don't have to be an economist or a math major to know that 12 is less than 14. So we shortened term limits.

Kurt OKeefe is with a group opposing Prop 1, No More Time For Career Politicians.

"Proposal One does three things, three things. It doubles the time a House member in Michigan can stay in office from three two-year terms to six two-year terms. It increases the state Senate time. You can be in office from two four-year terms to three four-year terms, and it revives the career of over 300 zombie termed, limited past legislators who could now run for the Michigan State House. That's it, he says.

Very different views on both what Prop 1 means for term limits and what it means for disclosure.

For term limits. Yes, the overall time allowed for any lawmaker drops from 14 to 12, but those years could be served wholly in any one chamber, increasing the current caps.

OKeefe calls the prop a solution in search of a problem.

Who is this guy or gal in the 13th or 14th year that did so much damage that there's that this is a problem, he asks.

Studley argues allowing lawmakers to stay in either chamber longer helps them get more done by cultivating relationships and not worrying as much about the politics of re-election.

If you want state representatives who are focused on raising money for their next job instead of doing the job they have. I guess if you're in favor of the status quo in Lansing, Then, maybe, Proposal One isn't for you, he says. I voted for term limits 30 years ago, but like living in a 30-year-old house, it's time for some maintenance and repairs.

The transparency part of prop 1 isn't as cut and dry.

The full text says it requires lawmakers to pass legislation requiring an annual financial disclosure by all in the legislature plus the Governor, Lt Governor, Secretary of State, and Attorney General, the disclosures being descriptions of assets and sources of income and certain positions held outside of their current role. But there are exemptions for religious, social, fraternal, or political entities or honorary positions.

What's left? Even if they pass something, why would they pass something? asks OKeefe.

This legislation requires detailed public financial disclosures, assets, liabilities, income, and several other categories. We believe it will give a full and complete picture. This legislation or amendment isn't wishful thinking. It actually has teeth, says Studley.

The teeth Studley talks about is the part of the prop stating a resident in the state can initiate legal action directly to the Michigan Supreme Court asking the court to compel the legislature if it fails to create the disclosure law.

OKeefe suggests that will be legally challenged if Prop 1 passes.

Guess what? No court in Michigan has jurisdiction to require the legislature to pass a law. It's the basic separation of powers, he says.