TWIN LAKE, Mich. —
Clerks in Muskegon County are concerned after some absentee ballots did not make it to their offices due to a post box break-in over the weekend.
While not an absentee voter drop box, the post box outside the Twin Lake Post Office was damaged between 11 a.m. on Saturday and 9 a.m. on Monday. Blue Lake Township Clerk Jeff Abram said a voter alerted him to possible missing mail from the box.
“I had a voter come into my office yesterday, and said he deposited his ballot in the Twin Lake post office box that was outside the collection box, and he wanted to know if I had his ballot yet, and I did not have it,” Abram said. “And he said what was broken into.... it was news to me, because I did not hear about that.”
Abram said about 10 minutes after that, another person came in claiming they put their ballot in the same post office box, and then confirmed the clerk’s office had not received it.
The clerk confirmed the post office did not know how much mail was taken, or what type of mail was taken. At this moment, there is no motive for the vandalized post box.
“I hope it's not to get the ballots. Again, we don't know what kind of mail was taken or how much was taken, but I do know that I do have two constituents that didn't get their ballots.”
Because of the lack of motive, Abram and other area clerks whose constituents use the box are afraid other ballots may be missing, but have not checked their ballot status. They’re urging anyone who dropped their ballot in the Twin Lake Post Office box this week to check their ballot’s status online or by calling their local clerk.
“We have a phone number. Just get a hold of us and we can look in the system really easy. Do we have your ballot, or we don't?” Abram said. “And if you don't, we're getting close to the election. We still have time to fix it.”
In Blue Lake Township, Abram said so far, they’ve seen a shift from absentee ballots to in-person early voting. He said the township’s number of early voters is “way up” thanks to the new 9-day early voting window.
To track your ballot, visit the Michigan Voter Information Center.
From there, you have a few different ways to look up your ballot information. You can enter your birthday and zip code, your driver's license number, or your home address.
Once the website finds your ballot, on the top right corner of the webpage there will be an "Absentee Ballot" section. In this section, you'll be able to see:
- The date of the election
- The date your application for an absentee ballot was received
- The date the absentee ballot was sent to you
- The date your absentee ballot was received back
- If you're on the permanent ballot list
The webpage will also include early voting information, details about your clerk and voting district, drop box locations for your absentee ballot and election day voting information.