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Early, in-person voting begins Oct. 26

The first Tuesday of November is an important day: Election Day.

Yet, despite the cultural significance Americans attach to the day, voter turnout in even the nation’s most-attended elections (presidential elections) hovered between 49-57 percent from the 1970s through the 2010s. Only in 2020 did voter turnout crest 60 percent, the first time at least six in 10 voting-age Americans cast a ballot in a presidential election since 1968.

Many factors impact a person’s decision to vote, ranging from the candidates and issues on the ballot, to voter apathy or pessimism, to their own social, racial, and educational backgrounds. But one of the simplest reasons people skip the polls is that they just can’t make time during those specific hours on that specific Tuesday. Work, childcare, transportation, and health can all make it difficult to exercise their constitutional right.

In 2018 and 2022, Michiganders decided to make voting more accessible.

First: Absentee Ballots

“To understand how we got early voting, you have to go back to 2018,” says Benjamin Marentette. Marentette is the Traverse City’s City Clerk, and managing elections is just one of many tasks assigned to his office. “In 2018, Michiganders passed a ballot proposal that amended Michigan’s Constitution to allow for no-excuse absentee voting and same-day voter registration,” Marentette says.

Before 2018, voters had to have a specified reason for requesting an absentee ballot (like being unable to travel to a polling location). As for voter registration, before 2018, voting-age adults had to register to vote at least 30 days before Election Day. Called Proposal 3, or the Voting Policies in State Constitution Initiative, the 2018 ballot measure passed with 66.9 percent of the vote, a two-thirds majority.

“We saw right away the importance of making absentee voting more accessible to voters,” says Marentette, spinning the clock forward to 2020. “When the nation was battling the pandemic, absentee voting surged by 200 percent, even 300 percent in some areas. People were really motivated, and not just to vote.

“For example, we had put out a call for about 100 extra election workers to handle the surge in absentee ballots we knew we were going to get, and in spite of the health risks associated with the pandemic, we had over 300 people step forward to help. So not only did we see the 2018 ballot proposal bolster voter participation, we also believe the measure got Michiganders more excited about participating in the critical administrative work of elections.”

In the 2020 presidential election, 79 percent of eligible voters cast a ballot in Michigan, compared to 64 percent in 2016. Similarly, in the 2022 midterms, 4,500,400 Michiganders voted, compared to 4,341,340 in 2018.

Second: Early Voting

And the experiment didn’t stop there.

“2022 was the next big step,” says Marentette. “Sixty percent of Michigan voters came together to pass Proposal 2, the Voting Policies in Constitution Amendment. Among other things, the proposal allows for a nine-day early in-person voting period.”

Two federal/state elections have occurred in Michigan since early voting went into effect: the February 2024 presidential primaries and Michigan’s August 2024 primaries. According to Marentette, implementing early voting in those elections was smooth, producing a relatively predictable mix of absentee, early, and Election Day voting.

With two elections under the city’s belt since the 2022 ballot proposal became the law, the city clerk is confident the “Super Bowl” of elections in November will go off without a hitch.

Marentette says that in the two elections that have taken place since early voting opportunities were implemented, Mondays and Tuesdays have seen fair turnout, both Saturdays see about the same turnout, and the second Sunday (the last day to vote early) has shown more turnout than the first Sunday in the early voting time block.

“Under the new system, Michigan elections must include early voting from the second Saturday before Election Day to the Sunday before the election for all federal and state elections, including primaries,” says Marentette, providing a rundown of how early voting has been implemented in the state.

“Local officials can provide additional early voting up to 27 days before Election Day. No voting occurs on the Monday before Election Day. We’re going to provide early voting opportunities for local elections, too, because if a voter believes they have a pathway to voting but it’s inconsistent, that discourages turnout. We want Traverse City residents to have access to early voting in all their elections, not just the state and federal ones.”

What’s the Difference?

Michigan’s 2018 and 2022 voting rights amendments certainly give their supporters something to be proud of, but they’re not new concepts. No-excuse absentee voting is already present in 27 states, same-day voter registration is common practice in 18 states, and 47 states offer some form of early, in-person voting.

According to Marentette, one of the most common questions he’s gotten from voters since 2022 is about the difference between absentee voting and early voting.

“Absentee voting absolutely has its benefits, but voters must be careful when filling out their ballot. If they make a mistake, like if they double mark a selection, that selection is rejected by the tabulator [though the other selections on the ballot are counted]. When voting in-person at a polling place either on one of the early voting days or on Election Day, if the same mistake were made, the tabulator would reject that selection in real time, and the voter would have an opportunity to correct the mistake and resubmit their ballot.”

Marentette notes that voters can request an absentee ballot, fill it out, then bring it in on an early voting day or Election Day and watch the tabulator count it.

Election workers have a streamlined database to ensure voters with absentee ballots are not also given a new ballot on Election Day, and staff are there to help if an absentee ballot has a mistake on it.

Following the 2018 and 2022 ballot proposals, Marentette says they have not received much pushback to the new voting opportunities.

“The only queries I get are about costs,” says Marentette. “And yes, creating more avenues for voting and expanding existing avenues does accrue more costs associated with administering our elections. There are more touch points with voters as a result of expanded absentee voting and adding early voting days, which means more temporary staff are needed, as are more election-related hours that we have to assign to our permanent staff.”

But Marentette reminds us that Michigan voters showed up twice, in 2018 and 2022, to request these changes. “I think it’s good to provide as many reasonable options for voting as possible,” says Marentette in closing. “We’re here to deliver democracy in as many ways as we can.”

Quick Guide to Voting in Traverse City

Traverse City provides early voting from 9am to 5pm on all days on which early voting is offered (the second Saturday before Election Day, Oct. 26, through the last Sunday before Election Day, Nov. 3). Voters may vote in-person from 7am to 8pm on Election Day.

Typically, November elections involve more absentee ballots, as many northern Michigan residents who head south for the colder months have already departed by Election Day. Residents can request an absentee ballot at michigan.gov/sos/elections/voting/absentee-voting.

For those who still need to register to vote, the clerk’s office is open Monday through Friday for voter registration, and they’re also open the Saturday before Election Day.

If there are 15 or more days before an election, voters may register online, by mail, or in person. Within 14 days of an election and on Election Day, those interested in registering must visit their local clerk’s office and present a photo ID and a government-issued document, bank statement, or utility bill showing their current address. Individuals can check their jurisdiction’s voter status and voting location by visiting mvic.sos.state.mi.us.

Questions about voting are encouraged, and Marentette urges residents unfamiliar with the new voting opportunities to contact his office. The state election website, michigan.gov/sos/elections, is a great place to start, but residents are always welcome to contact the Traverse City clerk’s office directly at (231) 922-4480.

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