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At a time when voting by mail has been increasingly challenged -- President Donald Trump has repeatedly leveled unfounded claims of fraud against absentee ballots, including in his prime-time speech a week ago in which he called them "inherently corrupt" -- state election officials this week said more Michigan voters are opting to use this method this summer.
With two weeks left before the Aug. 4 primary election, 572,553 Michigan voters had already cast their ballot, according to data publicly available on the relaunched Michigan Voting Dashboard, mi.gov/votingdashboard.
Voter requests for mail ballots and the number of completed ballots returned are significantly higher than the same time in the 2022 midterm primary, according to a news release Tuesday from the Secretary of State's office.
Data on the dashboard is updated daily and is pulled from the state's Qualified Voter File, the secure database of voters used by the Michigan Bureau of Elections and more than 1,600 election clerks throughout the state. The dashboard reports the number of mail ballots requested by voters, the number of ballots completed and returned to be counted on Election Day, and the number of ballots cast at early voting sites.
"Michiganders are voting by mail in tremendous numbers - demonstrating their support for this voting option," Deputy Secretary of State Aghogho Edevbie said in the news release. "Voters know mail ballots are convenient, accessible, and that they can track their ballot to make sure it was received. As clerks throughout the state prepare to open early voting sites this Saturday, it's clear that Michiganders are enthusiastic and engaged, which is why our state has broken turnout records in the last three statewide elections."
By Tuesday morning, a total of 1,967,288 voters had requested a mail (absentee) ballot for Michigan's Aug. 4 primary election, including 1,915,564 on the permanent mail ballot list, and 572,553 voters had returned their completed ballot by mail, drop box or to their clerk's office. Compared with the same time in 2022, mail ballot requests have increased 68.5% and ballots returned are up 43.6%. Nearly 8% of Michigan's active registered voters have already cast their ballot, according to the SOS.
To avoid postal delays -- something area residents are all too familiar with these days -- the state recommends mail ballots be hand delivered in its signed and sealed envelope to their local clerk's office or secure ballot drop box. Ballots must be received by clerks no later than 8 p.m. on Election Day to be counted.
Another voting option starts Saturday -- early voting sites will be open at least eight hours every day through Sunday, Aug. 2. For Dickinson County, the early voting site is at Kingsford City Hall, 305 S. Carpenter Ave., Kingsford. Iron County has two sites: Iron River City Hall, 801 W. Adams St., Iron River; and Crystal Falls City Hall, 401 Superior Ave., Crystal Falls.
No information was available for early voting in Menominee County.
To look up early voting sites and times in Michigan, go online to mi.gov/earlyvoting.
Voters can also bring their absentee ballots to an early voting site before Election Day.
Not registered yet to vote? There's still time, but eligible Michiganders must now register in person at their local clerk's office to vote in the Aug. 4 primary. Under Michigan law, online and mail registration are not permitted within 14 days of an election, according to the SOS office.
Voters can go to mi.gov/vote to check their voter registration, track their mail ballot, and find their early voting sites and drop boxes.
The Aug. 4 primary has some key races for the Upper Peninsula -- for U.S. Senate, for U.S. representative, for governor, for state Senate. Local issues likely will be on the ballot as well. This is not an election to watch from the sidelines -- get educated on what's at stake and then vote.