GRAND TRAVERSE COUNTY: Early voting turnout lower than some expected

Peter Kobs, The Record-Eagle, Traverse City, Mich.
·3 min read

Feb. 25—TRAVERSE CITY — The county's first experience with in-person early voting is going "slow but steady" with no major problems reported so far, officials said.

But turnout is lower than some area clerks expected.

"It's been a good learning experience for us," said Sam Gedman, chief deputy clerk and elections manager for Grand Traverse County. "I think many of the early voters are curious about the process. We may see an uptick on the last day, but it's hard to predict."

The nine-day early voting period began on Feb. 17, and concludes today. Regular Election Day is this Tuesday. Absentee paper ballots also will be accepted until 8 p.m. on Tuesday. Military or overseas ballots will be counted if they are postmarked by Election Day and received within six days after regular Election Day.

In Garfield Township, a total of 174 people — about 1 percent of eligible voters — cast their ballots during the early voting period as of this past Thursday, said Township Clerk Lanie McManus.

"It's a huge expense for taxpayers, but [early voting] is in the state Constitution now and we always comply with the law," she said. "I really appreciate my election workers. They've really stepped up and are happy to be here."

"Turnout has been lower than expected, but other than a few kinks, our [election] systems are working well," she said. "The online servers require a lot of steps, but that's good for security."

Countywide, 602 people voted through Thursday — out of approximately 76,000 eligible voters — less than 1 percent. A larger number is expected by 8 p.m. Tuesday, when regular Election Day ends.

"So far, we're very happy with the experience, though we'd appreciate more response," said Susanne Courtade, East Bay Township clerk. "We think all elections are important and we want to make sure all votes are counted."

Statewide, more than 50,000 Michiganders had cast an early vote as of Thursday, according to a statement from the Secretary of State's office. That is less than 1 percent of the 8,261,563 eligible voters.

Local election officials said they have received few complaints thus far during the new process.

One voter told a clerk there should be more "Vote Here" signs at election sites, while another was upset that he couldn't register as an "independent voter" in the primary. Unlike 31 other states, Michigan voters do not register by party affiliation, according to Ballotpedia.

Results from early voting will not be released to the public before 8 p.m. on Election Day, so there will be no early indication of voting trends.

A total of 10 presidential candidates are listed on the current Michigan primary ballots — seven on the Republican side and three on the Democratic side. Voters also can select the "uncommitted" option on either ballot, but cannot vote on both sides. No proof of party affiliation is required.

Early voting was made possible by Proposal 2, which Michigan voters overwhelmingly approved in November 2022 and is now a state constitutional amendment. In-person early voting was one of nine provisions in that measure.