In Michigan We Trust / Watch the Election
You don't have to take anyone's word for it. Michigan law gives the public a front-row seat to key stages of the election.
Anyone 16 or older and registered voters 18 and over 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.
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.
Any member of the public not running for office can informally observe voting without disrupting the process.
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.
Recounts happen in public. The board of canvassers must publicly announce the time and place under Michigan’s Open Meetings Act.
A statewide ballot audit starts with a livestreamed, bipartisan dice 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.
Audits are conducted in a public location, and precinct-level results must be made public.
Did you know?Michigan's statewide audit begins with officials rolling dice on a livestream to randomly select which ballots get hand-reviewed.
