Thanks to Michigan voters, there are now several different options for voting before Election Day! Following is a breakdown of those options: early voting at an early voting site and absentee voting, either from home or in person at your local clerk’s office.
You can vote before Election Day by going to an early voting site and casting your ballot, or you can vote with an absentee ballot, either from home or at your city or township clerk’s office.
For the August 6 Primary Election, early voting sites must be open Saturday, July 27 and run through Sunday, August 4 for at least eight hours a day, although some communities may have early voting for additional days and hours.
Early voting is the opportunity to vote in person at an early voting site before Election Day. For voters, the early voting experience is similar to voting at a polling place on Election Day and includes feeding their completed ballot into a tabulator. Voters go to an early voting site that serves their community and complete an Application to Vote.
The early voting site for your community may be in your city or township, in a neighboring town or township, or elsewhere in your county, depending on how your local clerk chooses to conduct early voting. To find out when and where early voting will be offered in your community, visit mi.gov/vote and click on “where do I go to early vote.” You can find your early voting site’s hours and locations at mi.gov/vote.
To vote before Election Day by absentee ballot, request your ballot online, by mail, or in person at your city or township clerk’s office.
Voting by absentee ballot is the process of requesting a ballot from your city or township clerk, receiving and filling out the ballot, and generally returning the ballot to your city or township clerk either in person, via a secure drop box, or by mail.
You can now apply for your absentee ballot for the August 6 Primary Election. You can apply online or submit a paper application. (If you want to vote from home, we recommend requesting your ballot by July 16 to give yourself enough time to receive it, complete it, and return it to your city or township clerk by the deadline.)
NOTE: You can take your absentee ballot to your early voting site, check in with the poll workers (fill out an Application to Vote), and insert your completed ballot directly into the tabulator.
Key Dates For The August Primary Election:
- NOW ⏤ Request an absentee ballot online or submit a paper application. (If you want to vote from home, we recommend requesting your ballot by July 16 to give yourself enough time to receive it, complete it, and return it to your city or township clerk by the deadline.)
- JUNE 27 ⏤ First day you can vote in person, with an absentee ballot, at your city or township clerk’s office.
- JULY 27 ⏤ First day of the mandatory early voting period.
- AUGUST 4 ⏤ Last day of the mandatory early voting period.
- AUGUST 6 ⏤ Election Day.
Make a plan to vote in the August 6 Primary Election! Visit VOTE411 to learn about your voting options, find out where your early voting site is located and its hours, get more information about your local clerk and secure Drop Box locations in your community.
Plus, check out this MichiganVoting.org video on how to vote before Election Day!