Michigan: Legislators move to improve the counting of absentee ballots before the November election

While President Trump rails against the use of mail-in ballots by voters, claiming, despite evidence to the contrary, that mail-in voting leads to fraud, the dirty little secret is that mail-in or absentee voting is equally beloved by voters in both parties. Both Democrats and Republicans encourage voters to use this method of voting on their Websites. In Michigan, mail-in voting is exactly the same as absentee voting. Absentee ballots are sent to voters after they send in an application. No excuse is necessary.

In MIchigan, more than 2.1 million voters have already requested absentee ballots for the November 3rd election. The Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson anticipates that more than 3 million people will cast absentee ballots. With the current restrictions on processing and counting ballots, long delays in election results are inevitable. The good news is that the Republican-dominated legislature is working with Democrats to pass legislation before the election to speed up the process of counting votes.

An article in the Detroit Free Press, “Absentee ballots could be processed earlier under bill OK'd by Michigan Senate” by Dave Boucher, 9/15/20, describes proposals that should lessen the chances for Election Day chaos in an important swing state. Probably, delays in obtaining final election results will still occur, but the wait will not be as excruciating as it could be without some changes.

According the to The Detroit Free Press article:

“Right now, Michigan law prevents clerks from opening any absentee ballot until Election Day. Although the statute is one of several intended to maintain the integrity of votes cast through absentee ballots, it also creates even more work on a day that is already exceedingly stressful for clerks.

“That leads to long days and the potential for mistakes, as seen in Detroit after errors there caused hundreds of workers to remain at the TCF Center (formerly Cobo Center) well past midnight to count absentee ballots in the Aug. 4 primary election. “

Other impediments to counting votes include the requirement that only signed ballots received by the time polls close at 8 p.m. on Election Day are valid. In the August 4th primary, many of the10,000 absentee ballots that were rejected, were rejected because they were received after Election Day, even those postmarked before Election Day. Although a bill passed by the Michigan Senate would allow clerks to start processing absentee ballots the day before the election, “[the Secretary of State] Benson wants lawmakers to take up measures that would allow clerks to count absentee ballots postmarked by Election Day and received within 48 hours of polls closing and would require clerks follow up with voters if they forget to sign their ballot.”

“‘The Bipartisan Policy Center recommends clerks have at least seven days to process absentee ballots before Election Day. This bill allows only ten hours, only minimal processing, and includes a sunset provision that requires clerks to continue their advocacy in years to come,’ Benson said in an emailed statement."

Ruth Johnson, a former Republican Secretary of State, who sponsored the Senate bill allowing the processing of ballots to begin the day before Election Day, is also pushing for more reforms that would alleviate some of the administrative burdens on clerks and make the vote count more efficient.  

These are all encouraging signs that legislators are taking more responsibility for improving the voting process and acknowledging that this is good for the state and its citizens.