ELECTIONS RUN BY LOCAL CLERKS
City and township clerks keep your voter rolls, run your polling places, and administer every federal, state, county, and local election.
Mich. Const. art. VII, §§ 4, 18; MCL 168.1 et seq. (e.g., MCL 168.761, 168.674).
Here in Michigan, we’ve been running our own elections since the beginning. Just like the framers of the US Constitution intended when they gave states that right, decentralizing power so it’s easier to oversee locally and harder to corrupt.
But, these days, confusion can spread faster than facts. So, instead of shouting louder, In Michigan We Trust gives every Michigander the information they need to understand how our elections actually work.
No spin, no politics. Just the facts. All backed up
by Michigan law and the state constitution.
Mock ups — creative in production
Michigan Election Facts
Securing the VoteMichigan's election process is intentionally designed to be checked and verified — by machines, by hand, and by the public.Click for moreCounting the VoteFrom your precinct to statewide certification, every step of the count is bipartisan, sealed, and on the record.Click for moreWatch the ELECTIONYou don't have to take anyone's word for it. Michigan law guarantees the public a front-row seat at every stage of the election.Click for moreAbsentee VotingIn 2018 Michiganders voted to make absentee voting available to all Michigan voters, no excuse required.Click for moreWho Can VoteIf you are a US citizen, 18 years of age, living in Michigan for 30 days, and not serving a jail sentence you can vote.Click for moreHow to VoteFrom registering to casting your ballot — the steps, the key dates, and every way to vote in Michigan.Click for more
SECURING THE VOTE
Michigan's election process is intentionally designed to be checked and verified -
by machines, by hand, and by the public.
Did you know?As part of post-election procedure checks after the 2024 election, county clerks and their staff hand-counted the presidential race in 378 randomly selected precincts statewide, checking election officials' compliance with more than 70 required procedures.
PUBLICLY TESTED TABULATORS
Vote tabulators are tested before the election via a Logic and Accuracy Test that you can watch in person. The test occurs before the election starts, and is open to the public.
MCL 168.798.
POLLS OPEN TO OBSERVERS
Any member of the public not running for office can informally observe voting without disrupting the process.
MCL 168.734a; Mich. Bureau of Elections, The Appointment, Rights, and Duties of Election Challengers and Poll Watchers.
COUNT OPEN TO ELECTION CHALLENGERS
Formally appointed observers from political parties or organizations can inspect, challenge, and count-watch.
MCL 168.730–168.733.
BOTH PARTIES COUNT THE VOTE
From the moment polls close to the final certification, every count, seal, and signature requires representatives from both parties, together.
Mich. Const. art. II, § 7(2); MCL 168.22, 168.24c, 168.674(2), 168.679a(2), 168.765a.
BALLOT COUNT DOUBLE CHECKS
After every statewide election, Michigan hand-counts a random sample of ballots and compares them to tabulator totals. Officials from both parties roll dice on a livestream to randomly select which ballots get checked — a public, tamper-proof way to prove the sample wasn’t rigged. In 2024, the ballot audit covered 166 randomly selected precincts, with 119,567 ballots hand counted.
Constitutional right in Michigan
Mich. Const. art. II, § 4(1)(l) (Props 18-3, 22-2); MCL 168.31a; Mich. Bureau of Elections Post-Election Audit Manual; Nov. 2024 Post-Election Audit Report.
ELECTION PROCEDURE DOUBLE CHECKS
After every statewide election, election officials, not political parties, hand-count at least one race in randomly selected precincts, checking whether every procedure was followed correctly. 378 precincts were checked in 2024. Results are made public on the spot.
MCL 168.31a(2)–(3); MCL 168.807.
AUTOMATIC RECOUNTS
Statewide races that fall within a 0.1% vote count margin are automatically recounted.
MCL 168.880a.
COUNTING THE VOTE
From your precinct to statewide certification, every step of the count is bipartisan, sealed, and on the record.
Did you know?The U.S. Constitution gives states the right to administer their own elections. Michigan decentralizes this right further — all the way down to your local neighborhood. Your election is run by one of over 1,600 local county, city, and township clerks, making Michigan's election system one of the most decentralized in the nation.
PAPER BALLOT
VOTING
Michigan uses paper ballots statewide. If you vote in person early or on Election Day, you feed your own ballot into the tabulator at your precinct. If you vote absentee you submit your own ballot by mail, at a drop box or your clerk’s office.
MCL 168.794; MCL 168.795(1)(b).
BALLOTS COUNTED BY TABULATORS OFFLINE
Your vote is registered on the tabulator’s memory card. The machine is not connected to the internet. Your original paper ballot drops into a locked container inside the machine.
MCL 168.794–168.795; MCL 168.795a; MCL 168.797a; MCL 168.24j; Mich. Bureau of Elections Election Fact Center.
PRECINCT RESULTS DOCUMENTED
After polls close, one Democratic and one Republican inspector break the seals on the tabulators together to access the memory cards. The machine prints its results on the spot, and every election worker present signs the printed tape to verify. The machine is not connected to the internet.
MCL 168.679a; Mich. Admin. Code R 168.782.
SEALED & ESCORTED BY BOTH PARTIES
The local clerk’s office is the first stop for your vote. Poll workers from both parties ride together to transport sealed ballot containers, sealed bags with memory cards, signed printed tapes of precinct results, and two sealed envelopes containing statements of returns.
MCL 168.805; MCL 168.24j; MCL 168.679a(2).
LOCAL CLERKS REPORT RESULTS
Your sealed ballot, your precinct’s memory card, and the signed result tape all go to your local clerk. They upload your precinct’s vote totals, post unofficial results, and forward the sealed materials on for bipartisan county-level review.
MCL 168.805; MCL 168.822(1); MCL 168.828; unofficial results reporting per Bureau of Elections procedures.
NO EARLY
TOTALS
Results can’t be released before 8 p.m., so no one casts a vote knowing how others already voted. Releasing results early is a felony under Michigan law.
Constitutional right in Michigan
Mich. Const. art. II, § 4(1)(m); MCL 168.765a(9); MCL 168.720j(14).
BIPARTISAN COUNTY BOARD VERIFIES
A bipartisan county board of canvassers double checks the precincts’ results. They review poll books, check seals, and confirm totals. In pairs made up of a Republican and a Democrat, canvassers may fix clerical errors, but never override results.
MCL 168.805; MCL 168.822(1); MCL 168.828; unofficial results reporting per Bureau of Elections procedures.
RESULTS CERTIFIED BY THE STATE
Once all 83 counties certify their election results, a bipartisan state board combines the totals and certifies Michigan’s election results within 20 days.
MCL 168.842; Mich. Const. art. II, § 7(3).
CERTIFICATION REQUIRED BY LAW
Canvassing boards must certify the results shown in the official returns.
Constitutional right in Michigan
Mich. Const. art. II, § 7(3); MCL 168.822(3), 168.842(5).
PAPER BALLOT BACKUPS
At every handoff — precinct to clerk, clerk to county, county to state — the paper ballot stays sealed and trackable, in case a recount, audit or legal challenge needs it.
MCL 168.794–168.795; MCL 168.805; MCL 168.24j; MCL 168.765a(10); MCL 168.871(1)(a).
WATCH THE ELECTION
You don't have to take anyone's word for it. Michigan law guarantees the public a front-row seat at every stage of the election.
Did you know?Michigan's statewide audit begins with officials rolling 20 ten-sided dice on a livestream to randomly select which ballots get hand-reviewed.
BE A POLL
WORKER
Anyone 16 or older can apply to be a poll worker: you’ll be trained and certified, sworn in under oath, and paid for your work. Every precinct is staffed by workers from both political parties, bipartisan oversight of Michigan elections starts in your precinct. Apply through your local clerk or at Michigan.gov.
MCL 168.677; MCL 168.683; MCL 168.674.
WATCH TABULATOR TESTING
Vote tabulators are tested before the election via a Logic and Accuracy Test. The test occurs before the election starts, and is open to the public.
MCL 168.798.
WATCH AT THE
POLLS
Any member of the public not running for office can informally observe voting without disrupting the process.
MCL 168.734a; Mich. Bureau of Elections, The Appointment, Rights, and Duties of Election Challengers and Poll Watchers.
WATCH THE CANVASS
Before results become official, each county’s bipartisan Board of Canvassers checks every precinct’s paperwork: voters signed in vs. ballots counted, seals, signatures, results tapes, and write-ins — then certifies within 14 days. All 83 county boards meet in public, and the state board livestreams.
MCL 168.821–.822; MCL 168.824–.828; MCL 168.842; Mich. Const. art. II, § 7; Open Meetings Act, MCL 15.261 et seq.
WATCH RECOUNTS
Recounts happen in public. The board of canvassers must publicly announce the time and place, and under Michigan’s Open Meetings Act.
Open Meetings Act, MCL 15.261 et seq.; MCL 168.861 et seq. (Ch. XXXIII, as amended eff. 2025); Mich. Admin. Code R 168.901–168.930 (eff. May 12, 2025); Recount Manual, Apr. 2025.
WATCH THE DICE ROLL
A statewide ballot audit starts with a livestreamed, bipartisan die roll to determine which ballots are pulled and hand-reviewed. In 2024, the ballot audit covered 166 randomly selected precincts, with 119,567 ballots hand counted.
Constitutional right in Michigan
MCL 168.31a; Mich. Const. art. II, § 4(1)(l); Mich. Bureau of Elections Post-Election Audit Manual; Nov. 2024 Post-Election Audit Report.
WATCH THE AUDIT RESULTS
Audits are conducted in a public location, and precinct-level results must be made public to interested persons present.
MCL 168.31a; MCL 168.807.
ABSENTEE VOTING
In 2018 Michiganders voted to make absentee voting available to all Michigan voters, no excuse required.
Did you know?39% of Michiganders voted absentee in 2024.
NO EXCUSE ABSENTEE
You can vote absentee for any reason. Vote at home and return your ballot by mail, at a drop box, or in person.
Constitutional right in Michigan
Mich. Const. art. II, § 4(1)(h), (j) (Props 18-3, 22-2); MCL 168.759 et seq.
APPLY ONCE
Join the permanent mail ballot list and your ballot comes automatically before every election. Leave the list any time. As of 2025, 25% of Michiganders are on the permanent mail ballot list.
Constitutional right in Michigan
Mich. Const. art. II, § 4(1)(k) (Prop 22-2); MCL 168.759 et seq.
VERIFIED SIGNATURES
The signature on your return envelope is verified against the signature on file in your voter registration record. If it does not match, your clerk must contact you and let you fix it.
Constitutional right in Michigan
Mich. Const. art. II, § 4(1)(h) (Props 18-3, 22-2); MCL 168.761; MCL 168.766; MCL 168.766a.
NO DOUBLE VOTING
You get one ballot per election. If you have an absentee ballot, surrender or spoil it to vote in person instead.
MCL 168.765b, 168.766(1)(a), 168.769.
VIDEO MONITORED DROP BOXES
Your drop box is monitored by video the 75 days before an election and on Election Day itself.
MCL 168.761d(7).
TRACK YOUR BALLOT
You can track your mail-in ballot like a package at Michigan.gov/Vote. Sign up there for email alerts.
Constitutional right in Michigan
Mich. Const. art. II, § 4(1)(i) (Prop 22-2); MCL 168.764c.
WHO CAN VOTE
If you are a US citizen, 18 years of age, living in Michigan for 30 days, and not serving a jail sentence you can vote.
Did you know?58% of Michigan's 18–29 year olds voted in 2024, the third highest youth vote turnout in the nation.
MICHIGAN RESIDENTS
You must live in your city or township for at least 30 days by Election Day, and be registered at your current address.
MCL 168.10, 168.492, 168.495.
CITIZENS ONLY
Only U.S. citizens can vote. You affirm your citizenship under penalty of perjury when you register, and lying is a felony.
MCL 168.495, 168.509r(3); MCL 750.423.
STUDENT VOTING
Out-of-state students can register to vote at their Michigan campus address instead of in their home state, but not both.
MCL 168.10, 168.11, 168.509o, 168.509r.
PREREGISTER AT 16
You are preregistered to vote when you get your driver’s license or state ID card at 16 unless you opt out. You automatically become a full registered voter at 17½, ready to vote the day you turn 18.
MCL 168.496a, 168.492.
SECOND CHANCES
If you’re not currently serving a sentence in jail or prison, you can vote.
Mich. Const. art. II, § 2; MCL 168.758b, 168.492a.
How to Vote in Michigan
Voter approved ballot proposals in 2018 and 2022 enshrined many voting rights in the Michigan constitution, where they can’t be undone without another statewide vote.
Vote EarlyConstitutional right in Michigan
Every community offers at least nine days of early voting before Election Day. Some offer more.
Mich. Const. art. II, § 4(1)(m) (Prop 22-2); MCL 168.720a to 168.720j.
Vote on Election Day
You can vote at your assigned polling place. Polls are open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. If you are in line at 8 p.m., you get to vote.
MCL 168.720.
No Excuse AbsenteeConstitutional right in Michigan
You can vote absentee for any reason. Vote at home and return your ballot by mail, at a drop box or in-person.
Mich. Const. art. II, § 4(1)(h), (j) (Props 18-3, 22-2); MCL 168.759 et seq.
Day of RegistrationConstitutional right in Michigan
You can register and vote on Election Day. Go to your city or township clerk’s office with proof of where you live, any time up to 8 p.m.
Mich. Const. art. II, § 4(1)(f) (Prop 18-3); MCL 168.497(2).
Get a Ride to Vote
Michigan’s old ban on paid rides to the polls was repealed. The repeal took effect in February 2024.
MCL 168.931, as amended by 2023 PA 185.
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Cast Your Ballot
Find your polling place or track your absentee ballot.
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In Michigan We Trust is a nonpartisan public education campaign explaining how Michigan elections actually work - the process, the safeguards, and the rules - all grounded in the state's constitution and election law. It is funded by donations from individual Michiganders.
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