Why Voter Registration Matters
Every eligible voter should have a fair and equal opportunity to register to vote and to cast their ballot. Millions of Americans miss the opportunity to vote because they don’t know how to register or they miss their state’s deadline to register.
What We Do
As the nation’s largest and longest-standing grassroots voter registration organization, each year our volunteers register voters and host community voter registration drives throughout our communities (Detroit, Hamtramck, and Highland Park). We concentrate our registration drives at locations that reach large numbers of unregistered voters, including high schools, community colleges, and naturalization ceremonies. We also help thousands of Americans register to vote online at VOTE411.org.
We do this to ensure all eligible Americans — especially first-time voters, non-college youth, new citizens, communities of color, and low-income Americans — have the opportunity to register and vote.
Check our Calendar for the latest events and information regarding League voter registration drives in Detroit, Hamtramck, and Highland Park.
We continue to strengthen democracy through voter registration and voter education…even during the novel coronavirus pandemic⏤
LWV Detroit Voter Registration Drives in the Community:
- High Schools for students 18 years of age (teachers + staff, too)
- Naturalization ceremonies
- Shelters for the homeless, such as COTS
- University and community college campuses in Wayne County
- Apartment complexes for people with limited mobility, seniors, and low-income individuals
- Community events
Voter Registration Info
There’s no voter registration deadline in Michigan. Voters can register to vote (or update their registration) at any time up until 8 pm on Election Day. Please remember to check your polling location! Go to VOTE411 for polling place locations, the races on your ballot, and more.
A voter has many ways to register to vote:
- Online at michigan.gov/voterregistration (if they have a valid Michigan driver’s license or state ID).
- At a Secretary of State branch office.
- At their city or township clerk’s or county clerk’s office.
- At any state agency that provides public assistance or services to people with disabilities
- By mailing in a completed voter registration application (review postmark restrictions)
- Through a voter registration drive.
- At your polling station on Election Day.
Those registered to vote where they live must vote at their assigned polling place. Those not registered to vote where they live can visit their local clerk’s office with proof of residency by 8 pm on Election Day, and once registered to vote where they live can vote by absentee ballot in their clerk’s office.
Not sure if you’re registered to vote? Have you recently moved, changed your name, or had your voting rights restored? Get help using the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) non-partisan voting assistance website, CanIVote.org.
NOTE: Due to Michigan’s recent redistricting process, some voters may have new precincts or polling locations. Visit MI.gov/vote or call the nonpartisan Election Protection Hotline at 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683) for confirmation.
Voter registration is more important than ever, as COVID-19 has changed the voting landscape in general. The wide array of changes to voting policy occurring in response to the pandemic makes it even more crucial that voters register or update their registrations as needed before Election Day.
That’s why thousands of organizations, companies, celebrities, and everyday Americans across the country are spreading the word about the importance of checking your voter registration—and a record-breaking nearly 600 League partners nationwide are joining them.
National Voter Registration Month
In 2002, Secretaries of State established September as National Voter Registration Month to encourage voter participation and increase awareness of state requirements and deadlines for voting.
Led by a coalition of voter advocacy and nonprofit groups, National Voter Registration Day takes place this year on September 19, 2023.
Take note:
- Voters with May elections in their communities can apply now for an absentee ballot in person at their city or township clerk’s office, by mailing a completed application to their city or township clerk, or by completing an application online. The League recommends that voters apply at least a month before the election to provide ample time for voters to receive a ballot, complete it, and return it to their city or township clerk.
- The Arabic, Bengali, Farsi, Spanish, and large-print absentee ballot applications are available here. The accessible absentee ballot application is available here.
- Prop 22-2 gives voters a constitutional right to receive an absentee ballot before each election by submitting a single signed application covering all future elections. Voters who apply for an absentee ballot for the May election using the BOE’s paper application form can join the permanent mail voter list using that same application. As Prop 2 implementation continues, voters will have additional ways to sign up for the list.
