BridgeDetroit 2024 Voter Guide: Everything you need to know about participating in elections

A way to vote by mail instead of going to a polling place. In Michigan, any registered Michigan voter can apply for and obtain an absentee ballot.

A sheet of paper used to cast a secret vote.

An addition or change to the state constitution, which requires a vote of the people.

An issue put on the state ballot by a citizen petition.

A tax on property. Local units of government, including school districts, may hold millage elections.

An organization made up of people who think alike on various issues that seeks to attain power within a government. Michigan law does not define party membership; this is the responsibility of each political party.

The place where votes are cast or recorded — usually used in plural (at the polls).

Allows those who are 16 years old to pre-register to vote.

The place where you vote. It is also called a polling place. Your local clerk’s office can tell you where your precinct is located.

A candidate may appear on the general election ballot by winning a preliminary election called a primary. In Michigan, the state primary is held in August in even-numbered years as are most township primaries. City primaries may be held in odd-numbered years.

A vote by citizens that approves or rejects an existing state or local law.

The process to get on the list of those able to vote on election day. In Michigan, voters may register in person, by mail, or online up to 15 days prior to an election. Voters may also register in person with their local clerk within 14 days of an election, up to and including Election Day.

You can look up your ballot ahead of time by going to https://mvic.sos.state.mi.us/Voter/Index and putting in your information.

With hundreds of locations in Detroit, the easiest way to determine you polling place is to go to https://mvic.sos.state.mi.us/Voter/Index and put in your information. You can also consult your voter registration card. Or you can call the city clerk.

Voters with disabilities can contact the Michigan Bureau of Elections Ombudsperson for Accessible Elections for assistance.

Email: MDOS-ADAVoting@Michigan.gov | Phone: 517-335-2730

 More information on accessible elections and voting is available at Michigan.gov/Vote.

Lawmakers last year approved legislation to expand what forms of voter identification are accepted at the polls. Options include a voter’s U.S. passport, tribal photo identification, military identification or a student ID in addition to a driver’s license. 

Voters without identification are still allowed to sign an affidavit confirming their identity to cast their ballot, a controversial rule opposed by Republicans that was enshrined into the constitution under 2022’s Proposal 2. 

• Language access: Michigan residents have the right to bring a non-English interpreter with them to the polls for assistance in casting a ballot. Your interpreter cannot influence your vote, cannot be your employer, an agent of your employer, or an officer or agent of your labor union.
• No photo identification requirement: If you do not have picture ID with you, you can still cast a ballot.
• No-reason absentee voting: Every registered voter in Michigan has the right to use an absent voter ballot to vote from home, vote early, or vote by mail.
• Same-day voter registration: Eligible Michigan residents can register to vote on Election Day by visiting a designated local clerk’s office and providing proof of residency.
• Returning citizens: Michigan residents who are not currently serving a sentence in jail or prison have the right to register to vote and cast a ballot.
• Voter accessibility: Michigan voters have the right to accessible polling places and to utilize Voter Assist Terminals (VATs) for assistance casting a ballot. VATs are ballot marking devices with special accommodations for hearing, visual, physical, and other disabilities. Voters have the right to vote independently and privately without assistance using a VAT, and on-site election inspectors (poll workers) are available to assist or provide instruction upon request.

If you experience any issues casting your ballot on or before Election Day, contact the Election Protection Hotline for assistance:

• English: 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683) 
• Spanish: 888-VE-Y-VOTA (888-839-8682) 
• Arabic: 844-YALLA-US (844-925-5287) 
• Bengali, Cantonese, Hindi, Korean, Mandarin, Tagalog, Urdu, and Vietnamese: 888-API-VOTE (888-274-8683) 

The voting age is still 18, but 16- and 17-year-olds in Michigan will be able to pre-register to vote so they are automatically registered upon turning 18.

The option is available until a teen is less than six months from turning 18, at which point they’d have to wait to register until their birthday. 

New laws governing election certification align Michigan with the federal Electoral Count Reform Act, which was introduced in Congress with a handful of GOP co-sponsors and signed last year by Democratic President Joe Biden.

Among other things, the federal law makes clear that the vice president has a “ministerial” duty to count electoral votes that states send to Congress, contradicting former President Donald Trump’s claim that Mike Pence could and should have blocked certification of the 2020 presidential election.

The new Michigan law similarly states that partisan election canvassers at both the county and state levels have a “ministerial, clerical, and nondiscretionary duty” to certify results based on results compiled by local clerks.

The Michigan measure also speeds up the timeline for completing the post-election canvass and clarifies that only the governor can submit a list of presidential electors to congress. It also changes the nominating process for the bipartisan Board of State Canvassers. 

Detroit has 503 voting precincts and 134 absentee counting boards. During an election, each of these precincts and boards requires a staff of paid precinct inspectors to assist voters as they arrive at the polls on Election Day.

Registered voters interested in serving as precinct inspectors must submit an election inspector application and take a brief test at the Detroit Department of Elections. In addition to your name, address and date of birth, applicants must include their political party preference and qualifications to fill the position such as education or experience.

A precinct inspector who is 18 years of age or older must be a registered voter of the State. They cannot be a challenger, candidate, member of a candidate’s immediate family, or a member of the local Board of Canvassers. Anyone convicted of a felony or an election crime may not serve.

Citizens who are 16 and 17 may also apply and work as a precinct inspector.
Come to the Department of Elections and complete the Election Inspector Application.

Each training session will last approximately two and a half hours.

You do not have to be a resident of Detroit.

You will be assigned to one of the polling precincts located throughout the City of Detroit. The goal is to assign you to the closest available polling precinct to your home.

You will be paid based on classification. All Poll workers checks are mailed within three to six weeks after each election.

Source: City of Detroit

A new law will make it a crime to intimidate or otherwise threaten election workers in an attempt to stop them from performing their duties. Penalties would start at 93 days in jail and up to a $500 fine for a first offense. 

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, in a November press conference, said the changes will “protect the people who protect democracy” and combat an uptick of election worker intimidation that has escalated in recent cycles.  

Other legislation signed last year created an option for prospective election workers to apply online. 

Another newly-signed law repeals a ban on hired transportation to voting booths, an 1895 law believed to have been the only one of its kind left in the country. 

Ride-share companies such as Uber and Lyft had cited the law for not offering discounted rides to polls, as the companies do in other states, and the ban had long been the subject of legal disputes.

Go to https://www.michigan.gov/sos/language-services

There are several new laws and procedures in place for Michigan elections in 2024, including the option for voters to cast their ballots in person well before Election Day begins.  

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Michigan’s Democratic-majority Legislature approved dozens of new election rules last year, implementing several reforms brought on by a 2022 voter-approved constitutional amendment and others they argue will make the process more accessible to voters and prevent chaos.

Although some of the new policies had bipartisan support, many Republicans opposed most of them, claiming they could compromise election security.

The new in-person voting rules Michigan in line with 21 other states that offer the option and builds off of reforms passed by voters in 2018 that allowed every voter the option of casting an absentee ballot.

Source: Bridge Michigan

No-reason absentee voting, approved by voters in 2018, has become a popular option for casting ballots in Michigan — more than 1.6 million voters requested absentee ballots in weeks prior to the 2022 general election. 

Starting this year, voters can sign up for email or text alerts to track the status of their ballots once they’re submitted. In Detroit, you can go to detroitav.ballottrax.net/voter.

The more stringent tracking system also requires election officials to notify voters if their absentee application or ballot was rejected, along with the reason for doing so and how to resolve any issues. 

From a procedural standpoint, cities and townships of any size are now allowed to process and tabulate absentee ballots between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. on the Monday before Election Day, or on any of the eight days prior to Election Day if the municipality has over 5,000 residents. 

However, they cannot report any results until polls close at 8 p.m. on Election Day.  

Once voters return their absentee ballots by mail, drop them off at a designated ballot drop box or deliver them to their local clerk in person, election officials scan the ballot envelope into the computer system and verify that the signature on the ballot envelope correlates with the signature on file. 

If a voter forgets to sign the envelope or the signature is significantly different than the one on file — or if someone else signed the envelope — the clerk’s office is supposed to notify the voter of the discrepancy and ask them to correct it. 

Ballots are then sorted by voters’ ward and precinct and cross-checked to ensure the number of ballots matches what’s recorded on the computer. The ballots are then stored in bins by ward and precinct and remain in storage until they can be processed or counted unless there’s a change in a voter’s status or a voter asks to spoil their ballot ahead of Election Day. 

Cities and townships of any size are now allowed to process and tabulate absentee ballots between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. on the Monday before Election Day, or on any of the eight days prior to Election Day if the municipality has over 5,000 residents. However, they cannot report any results until polls close at 8 p.m. on Election Day. 

Instead of submitting a new absentee ballot application for every election cycle, voters can opt to vote by mail in every election with a single application.

Registered voters who choose this option will get absentee ballots for all future elections unless they rescind their application, move without updating their registration address or don’t vote for six consecutive years. 

Voters can apply online and opt into the permanent program through the Secretary of State or by contacting their local clerk’s office. 

Don’t worry about finding a stamp, either — the changes also require election officials to provide pre-paid postage for absentee ballot-related mail. 

Absentee ballots cast by military or overseas voters will be given more time to count starting in 2024, even if they arrive after Election Day.

Typically, the deadline for voting is 8 p.m. on the day of an election. But under new election laws, if an out-of-country or military vote was postmarked on or before Election Day, and received by a clerk within six days of the election, the ballot would be added to the final count.