Questions? Problems?
Call or Text the Nonpartisan Election Protection Hotline
(866) OUR-VOTE | (866) 687-8683
LIFE CYCLE OF A BALLOT
Absentee/Mail Ballot
You’re already registered to vote where you live. You want to vote from home and have requested an absentee ballot. Now what?
1. AVB Mailed: Starting 40 days before an election, absentee ballots are mailed by our local clerks to eligible voters that apply for an absentee ballot or are on the permanent mail ballot list.
2. AVB Completed and Returned by Voter: Voters complete their absentee ballot, place it in the return envelope, and sign and date the back of the envelope. The voter then returns the completed absentee ballot either by mail, to an official ballot drop box, or directly to the voter’s local clerk’s office. Absentee ballots returned at ballot drop boxes are collected daily starting 35 days before Election Day by official clerk staff who have taken a legal oath.
3. AVB Received by Clerk’s Office: Upon receipt, the clerk’s office scans the ballot envelope into the computer system and verifies that the signature on the ballot envelope matches the voter’s signature on file. Once verified, the absentee ballot is marked as received in the computer system. Absentee ballots are stored in a secure, locked location until they can be processed and counted.
4. AVB Processed and Tabulated: Cities and townships process absentee ballots between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. on the Monday before Election Day, or on any of the eight days prior to Election Day if the municipality has more than 5,000 residents. However, election results cannot be reported until polls close at 8 p.m. on Election Day.
5. Once all absentee ballots have been tabulated, the workers verify that the number of absentee ballots delivered matches the number of absentee ballots tabulated.
6. The tabulated absentee ballots and envelopes are then placed in a sealed, approved ballot container and taken to the clerk’s office.
Voting in Person Ballot
You’re already registered to vote where you live. You want to vote in person in your community. Now what?
1. Ballot Issuance: A voter arrives at their designated early voting site or their assigned Election Day polling place and completes their ballot.
2. Ballot Tabulation: The voter then feeds their ballot directly into the tabulator at their voting site.
3. Ballot Storage: All tabulated ballots remain in a locked bin inside of the tabulator until the voting site closes for the day. At that time, one worker from each party removes the ballots from the tabulator and places them in a sealed, approved ballot container. The ballot containers are stored in a secure, locked location until they are returned to the clerk’s office’s receiving board when polls close on Election Day.
4. Securing the Vote: The tabulators keep a running tally of all ballots cast. At the end of each day of voting during the early voting period and on Election Day, the poll workers verify that the number of voters who received a ballot that day matches the number of ballots tabulated that day.
5.Close of Polls: When the polls close on Election Day, poll workers enter a code into the tabulator to officially “close the polls.” This means the tabulator can no longer accept and tabulate ballots. Poll workers securely transport the election reports, and the sealed bags of ballots to their local clerk’s office.
6. Post-Election Ballot Storage: Both absentee ballots and in-person ballots are sealed into official ballot bags and stored in the clerks’ office, where they remain until the Board of State Canvassers certifies the election results.
Call the Election Protection hotlines for assistance at any time.
For assistance in English, call 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683).
Para recibir ayuda en español, llama a 888-VE-Y-VOTA (888-839-8682).
844-YALLA-US (844-925-5287) :للمساعدة باللغة العربية، اتصل على
For assistance in Bengali, Cantonese, Hindi, Korean, Mandarin, Tagalog, Urdu or Vietnamese call 888-API-VOTE (888-274-8683).
For additional information or questions, email: questions@michiganvoting.org.