LANSING, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — Michigan elected officials held a joint press conference Wednesday to encourage citizens to make a plan to vote as soon as possible, and assure them that all valid ballots will be counted.
“In this election, voters will be able to cast their vote with confidence and know that their voice matters,” Governor Gretchen Whitmer said. “Everyone needs to make a plan. Schedule time in your day to fill out your ballot and take it in. If you don’t yet have an absentee ballot and would like one, whether you have requested it or not, you should go to your clerk’s office to request one, fill it out, sign the envelope and submit it.”
Registered voters can request an absentee ballot at their clerk’s office until 4 p.m. on Monday Nov. 2 or vote at their polling place on Nov. 3. Unregistered voters can register and request and absentee ballot at their clerk’s office until 8 p.m. on Nov. 3.
With less than a week until Election Day, voters should not rely on the United States Postal Service to deliver their absentee ballots, and should instead go in person to their clerk’s office or a ballot drop box in their jurisdiction.
“In Michigan every valid absentee ballot will be counted as they always have been, by a pair of election workers – one from each major political party – trained to count together without political bias,” Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said. “Further, even after the counting is done, which could take until Friday in some jurisdictions, boards at the county and state levels, comprised of people from both parties, must then review the procedures and counts of the entire election, before the results can be certified as official.”
Meannwhile, Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist II is reminding citizens about the consequences of voter intimidation.
“I’ve been traveling across our state encouraging Michiganders to make a plan to vote early with an absentee ballot,” Gilchrist said. “If you do plan to go to the polls on Election Day, remember that voter intimidation of any kind is illegal, and everyone has the right to vote without fear of intimidation. Unregistered voters can register and vote at their clerk’s office, including during their clerk’s office hours this weekend. Election workers are required to wear masks, and all voters are strongly encouraged to do so.”
Voters can find their clerk office and drop box locations at Michigan.gov/Vote. They can also track their absentee ballot at the same site to ensure it is received.
All absentee ballots must be received by 8 p.m. on Election Day, November 3, in an envelope with a signature that matches the voter’s signature on file with their clerk.
