A record number of absentee ballots -- 2.39 million -- have been requested by Michigan’s 7.7 million registered voters. That number is expected to grow with the hot races on the ballot and because of safety concerns with COVID-19.
You can begin voting with absentee ballots on Thursday at your local clerk’s office or one of many satellite offices they are setting up. Those locations can also provide voter registration.
Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson is providing 20,000 workers on the state level to assist local clerks with the election. 6,000 of those will be working in Detroit. 21 satellite offices are being set up in Detroit and will be open on October 5 with staffing help from the state and other City of Detroit offices.
If you want to mail-in your absentee ballot, it is recommended you do it by October 19. But all ballots postmarked by November 2 will be counted.
Absentee ballots can’t be counted by law until election day, November 3, and delays in final results are expected. That could still be changed by the legislature and is pending.
Related: Absentee voting 101: What you need to know as absentee ballots arrive
Related: Drop boxes for absentee ballots placed around City of Grand Rapids
