The Headlines

First, if you haven’t already heard, MichiganEarlyVote.com is once again live and fully updated for the 2024 general election. A project of Voters Ed Fund, MichiganEarlyVote.com includes verified locations of drop boxes and early vote centers for every municipality in the state in an easy-to-use, straightforward, and free online tool. Please use and share! 

I’ve mentioned in previous updates how important the Michigan Supreme Court race is to protecting democracy here in Michigan. Regardless of the outcome of the presidential election, the Michigan Supreme Court will be responsible for resolving any potential legal challenges to Michigan’s election processes, election results, and voter eligibility. 

We set out to give our statewide grassroots army the tools necessary to reach voters in their own communities with the message of voting their entire ballot, including the nonpartisan Michigan Supreme Court races. Keep reading for more about our volunteers’ efforts.

The Details

• For those who might have missed my last update on this, I want to make clear what is at stake in the Michigan Supreme Court race:
  • Many voters do not realize that voting straight ticket does not cast a vote in the nonpartisan judicial section. 
  • Over 35% of Michigan voters are at risk for not voting in the Supreme Court race in this election.
  • Michigan Supreme Court decisions directly impact the trajectory of our democracy, and are especially important for organizations like ours who engage in direct democracy through citizen ballot initiatives. 
• Voters Not Politicians volunteers have been hitting the streets and engaging voters where they are with our Flip It! Don’t Skip It! Campaign.

Our Communications Manager Melinda Billingsley joined new volunteers Sarah H. and Lizzie F. to pass out literature in Ferndale. 

• We’re asking voters if they’ve made a plan to vote in the nonpartisan section of the ballot, and encouraging them to take the pledge to vote their full ballot. Then we’re following up with them to remind them to make use of absentee and early voting to make sure they make their voice heard in this critical race. 
• We’re also urging voters to think about which candidates can be trusted to protect our constitutional right to vote and uphold the will of Michigan voters. 
• Our literature makes it clear where the candidates stand on voting rights, an issue that affects all voters, and we’ve already distributed thousands of pieces of literature to volunteers to take into the field. 
• Using our new 2024 Election – Volunteer Opportunities webpage, volunteers have access to a variety of opportunities to get out and talk to voters in the format that works best for them.
  • The webpage also makes it easy for volunteers to find upcoming events not only in their own area, but also in areas they may be traveling to soon. One volunteer from Southeast Michigan joined a tabling event in Kalamazoo because they saw it on the webpage!
• We want to make sure every VNP volunteer has the opportunity to get involved in this campaign, which is why we offered a specific Volunteer From Home opportunity: a Letter to the Editor Workshop and Write In.
  • During the workshop, volunteers were given a guide on how to write a letter to the editor, including specific advice on how to talk about the Supreme Court race to different audiences. 
  • At the end of the workshop, volunteers had a completed letter, and a plan for which local paper they would submit to. We’re looking forward to seeing these letters published in outlets across the state in the next two weeks. 

What’s Next

With just over two weeks left until voting ends in Michigan, we are ramping up our efforts to get volunteers in the field and talking to voters. There are several down ballot races that are just as critical to protecting Michigan’s democracy as what happens at the top of the ticket, and Voters Not Politicians is here to fill in the gaps and make sure voters know which candidates can be trusted to make the right choices for voters in Michigan. 

P.S. Last week we shared an example of a voter education video from our My City Votes campaign. These videos have now been seen over 735,000 times by voters across our six My City Votes cities! 

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