Voters can begin early voting today
Michigan registered voters can begin casting their ballots for the November general election today.
Early voting for president, U. S. Senate, State House, and local county and municipal races, will begin as local clerks send out absentee ballots to millions of Michigan voters who have requested one or who are on a permanent absentee voter list.
On Thursday, local clerks will also open their offices so voters to cast their ballots in-person.
As of Monday, 2.39 million Michiganders had requested an absentee ballot for the Nov. 3 general election. That’s a Michigan election record and nearly a third of all registered voters in the state (7.7 million).
In Oakland County, around 400,000 voters have requested an absentee ballot. In Wayne County, around 385,000 voters have requested an absentee ballot. The general election ballots surpass the 2 million absentee ballots requested for last month’s primary. Around 65 percent of ballots cast in the August primary were absentee.
The reasons for the increase vary. In 2018, voters approved expanding the right to vote by mail so more Michiganders can do so with fewer obstacles. The COVID-19 pandemic has also led voters to avoid polling places and choose to cast their ballots in the safety of their homes.
Election officials are encouraging absentee voters to complete ballots and return them at least two weeks before Election Day because of concerns about United States Postal Service delivery performance.
Instead of returning ab
sentee ballots via USPS, clerks are encouraging voters to place ballots in local drop boxes. Voters looking for drop box locations can visit Michigan. gov/ Vote and enter their information under the “Your Clerk” section.
All registered voters can apply for an absentee ballot online by filling out an application at Michigan.gov/ Vote and providing information including their driver’s license or state ID card number and the last four digits of their Social Security number. Alternatively, voters may print out an application form and mail it, email a scan or photo of it, or deliver it in person to their local clerk. Requests for an absent ballot must be received by your local clerk no later than 5 p.m. Oct. 30.
If you’re not registered to vote, you can do so online through Oct. 19 by visiting https://mvic.sos.state.
mi.us/RegisterVoter.Between Oct. 20 and 8 p.m. on Nov. 3, Michiganders must register in-person at your local clerk’s office.
After Oct. 19, voters wishing to vote absentee are being encouraged to go directly to their clerk’s office in person if possible, where they can receive their ballot and vote it while they are there.
If you’re already registered at your current address, you can request an absentee ballot in person at your clerk’s office anytime up to 4 p.m. on the day prior to the election. This ballot must be completed at the clerk’s office.
A Court of Claims judge ruled Friday that Michigan clerks must accept late ballots so long as they are postmarked no later than Nov. 2 and received before the deadline for certifying election results, or 14 days after the election.
The preliminary injunction, which applies only to the Nov. 3 election, comes about a month and a half after the Michigan Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal from the League of Women Voters challenging the law.
Notable deadlines
By 5:00 p.m., Oct. 30
• Voters may obtain an absentee ballot via First Class mail
By 2:00 p.m., Oct. 31
• Voters may submit a written request by mail to their local clerk’s office to spoil their absentee ballot and receive a new ballot by mail
Up to 4:00 p.m., Nov. 2
• Voters may obtain an absentee ballot in person in the clerk’s office
By 4:00 p.m., Nov. 2
• Voters may submit a written request in person at their local clerk’s office to spoil their absentee bal
lot and receive a new ballot in person at their local clerk’s office Up to 4:00 p.m., Nov. 3
• Emergency absentee voting for November general election Up to 8:00 p.m., Nov. 3
• Michiganders who register to vote on Election Day may obtain and vote an absentee ballot in person in their local clerk’s office or vote in person at their voting precinct
A list of other November election deadlines for candidates and voters can be found at https://www.michigan.gov/documents/sos/2020_Elec- DatesBooklet_ ED- 12_ 10- 0919_668275_7.pdf.