Voters Not Politicians defends and promotes policies that strengthen democracy.

Our work on Nights & Weekends falls squarely within our commitment to work towards “Free and Fair Elections,” which are built on:

• Votes that count equally, where no one is advantaged or disadvantaged because of who they are or where they live; and
• Inclusive and accessible voting systems and policies.

A college student in Mount Pleasant, a working mother in Pontiac, and a retiree in Bloomfield Hills equally deserve accessible voting services. Expanded clerk hours, satellite locations, and widely available information on voting rights are all key to full participation in a representative government. 

Under Michigan’s new rules under Proposal 3, if you’re a registered voter, you can apply for and vote an absentee ballot at your clerk's office starting 40 days before election day, through 4 pm on the Monday before election day. If you’re not registered or need to change your registration address, you can register online until 14 days before election day, after which you can register in person, and then apply for and vote an absentee ballot while you’re there, including on election day through 8:00 p.m.

These new rules make it much easier to register and vote, but during Michigan’s primary election on March 10, 2020, many clerks’ offices saw long lines as college students and others took advantage of the opportunity to register and cast their votes in person on election day. Many missed classes or work and some even gave up after having waited in line, and left without voting.

About 13,000 Michiganders registered to vote and voted on the March 10th primary election day, with more than 6,000 of them registering and voting after 4:30 p.m. (Source) If voters across the state had access to expanded clerks’ office hours on evenings and weekends leading up to election day, more satellite locations to choose from, and increased education about their new voting rights under Proposal 3, the number of Michiganders that cast their votes leading up to and including election day could have been even larger, and their experiences would have been improved.

Yes! Proposal 3 imposes a new requirement for clerks’ offices to be open for at least 8 hours on the weekend before each election day for voter registration and absentee voting. But this is a floor, not a ceiling, which means municipalities can provide more voting hours on evenings and weekends outside of regular business hours if they choose. And they should. Many people, especially new voters, have schedules that prevent them from visiting their clerk’s office during daytime working hours. 

Voters Not Politicians recommends:

• Expanded nights & weekend hours at clerks’ offices for in-person registration and absentee voting
  • 6 days of weekend voting (e.g., a minimum of 6 hours per day each Saturday and Sunday for the three weekends before each election day), and 
  • 6 days of expanded weekday access (e.g., until 8:00 p.m. at least two weekdays per week during the three weeks before election day); and
• Robust voter education on expanded hours, offices, and access, especially in municipalities with over 50,000 registered voters; and
• At least 1 satellite location for municipalities with over 50,000 registered voters OR municipalities with major universities

Yes! We applaud:

• Lansing City Clerk Chris Swope, who added 48 hours beyond regular business hours for registration and voting for the March primary
• Ann Arbor City Clerk Jackie Baudry and the Ann Arbor City Council, who, encouraged by VNP volunteers, passed a resolution calling for 24 additional clerk’s office hours and a satellite location on the University of Michigan campus, effective in November of 2020
• East Lansing City Clerk Jennifer Shuster and the East Lansing City Council, who expanded clerk’s office hours by 20 additional hours.
• City of Berkley - Government & Community Services - Adding 16 additional hours plus a pop-up satellite office, to be announced soon
• City Government of Ferndale - Added 4 weekday evenings: Tuesday and Wednesday 5-8 pm, during each of the 2 weeks preceding the election and 4 hours each on the Saturday and Sunday two weekends before Election Day
• City of Pontiac - Added 4 weekday evenings, Monday through Thursday 8:30AM - 8:00PM, now through August 4th

This will depend on local laws, but one example is the resolution that the Ann Arbor City Council adopted in November 2019, that directs the City Administrator to develop a plan to expand voting access in the city.

Ann Arbor Nights & Weekend Resolution passed in November, 2019

Title

Resolution to Develop a Plan to Expand Access to Voting and Registration Beyond the Minimum Required by the Michigan Constitution for Even-Year November General Elections

Staff

Reviewed by:  Jacqueline Beaudry, City Clerk

Approved by:  Howard S. Lazarus, City Administrator

Body

Whereas, The City of Ann Arbor is committed to ballot access for all its citizens;

Whereas, Extended voting hours and locations for voter registration and casting of absentee ballots can increase access, particularly for new Ann Arbor voters and people unable to accomplish these tasks during ordinary business hours; and

Whereas,  Article II, Section 4 (f) and (g) of the Michigan Constitution establish the following rights:  1) Absentee balloting for all voters who choose to vote in that manner; 2) Voter registration any time before and during election day; 3) Voting immediately upon registration; and 4) Availability of at least eight hours during the Saturday or Sunday prior to an election during which time citizens may register and or vote;

RESOLVED, That the City Council requests that the Ann Arbor City Administrator develop a plan to expand voting and registration access beyond the minimum required by the Michigan Constitution and include the cost of this plan in the budget request for the Office of the City Clerk; and

RESOLVED, That for even-year November General Elections, the plan should include, at a minimum, a) 24 open-office service hours beyond both ordinary business hours and the constitutional eight-hour weekend requirement during which time citizens may register and vote, and b) registration and absentee balloting at a satellite location designed to improve access over exclusive reliance on the Office of the City Clerk in City Hall; and c) broad publicity for the extra hours for registration and voting.

Sponsored by:  Councilmembers Ackerman, Nelson, Griswold, Ramlawi, and Mayor Taylor

As Amended and Approved by Ann Arbor City Council on November 18, 2019

We understand that resources can be an issue and as part of Nights & Weekends we work with local and state governments and philanthropic partners to free up the resources needed to ensure that the promise of Proposal 3’s important reforms is fully realized in the remaining 2020 elections.