Petition to change voter ID rules advances

A Monday vote by Michigan’s elections panel clears the way for a Republican-led effort to collect signatures on an initiative that proposes new voter ID rules, restrictions on election funding and a ban against election officials mailing absentee ballot applications unless voters specifically request them.

The Board of State Canvassers approved the Secure MI Vote petition form in a 3-0 vote, allowing the group to gather at least 340,047 signatures, the number needed to introduce the initiative to the Legislature. Democratic state canvasser board member Julie Matuzak was absent.

The initiativemirrors proposals in GOP bills opposed by voting rights advocates and election officials who say the changes would disenfranchise voters. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is expected to veto those bills, but the initiative process allows state lawmakers to enact the changes without her approval or a statewide vote.

Voters can seek a referendum on the initiative and suspend its enactment until a statewide vote, but the Michigan Constitution prohibits referendums on initiatives that contain spending provisions. The Secure MI Vote initiative would appropriate $3 million for a Voter Access Fund to provide free state IDs.

The group will begin gathering signatures over the next two weeks and hopes to have enough signatures “well before” the 180-day window it has under Michigan election law to collect them, according to Secure MI Vote spokesperson Jamie Roe.

The state canvassers must review the signatures and certify the initiative before it can be introduced to the Legislature. That process can drag on for months. As Secure MI Vote gears up to circulate its petition initiative, opponents are preparing to mobilize volunteers as part of a “decline to sign” campaign to dissuade voters from adding their signature to the initiative.