GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — As we approach Election Day many local officials are working to emphasize how, from their perspectives as those with perhaps the most intimate and deep knowledge of local elections, voters can have confidence in the system.
You may remember last week, 13 ON YOUR SIDE brought you news on a bipartisan democracy group's poll in which, according to the pollster, respondents said that if the 12 elections practices they were asked about were in place, election confidence would skyrocket.
These practices, the group said, were either in state law already or in widespread use.
So, in the lead-up to Election Day, we're verifying some of these practices and what the law has to say.
Today, we're verifying practices related to absentee ballots - a hot topic for many discussions over election security.
Long story short, checks and balances are in place to prevent nefarious and illegal actions surrounding absentee ballots, including tampering.
But, as with every story, it's never so short.
So, let's VERIFY!
Absentee Drop Box Surveillance
The existence of absentee ballot drop boxes on the street has left some to wonder whether these boxes are surveilled to prevent tampering with the contents, messing with the ballots or other illegal activity that could alter votes totals.
HERE'S WHAT WE CAN VERIFY
Under state law MCL 168.761d, Subsection 7, all drop boxes installed in the last few years have been required to have video surveillance through the 75 days before the election and on election day.
All of those not ordered or installed before October 1, 2020 must have surveillance in place on them by 2026.
In places like Ottawa County, the clerk's office says all boxes are under camera surveillance.
"Going into this election, those drop boxes - those newer drop boxes - they have to be under video surveillance," said Republican Clerk Lisa Posthumus Lyons of neighboring Kent County in a press call last week. "And I think that's really, really, really important."
Additionally, the law says, boxes must be checked any day the local clerk's office is open for the 35 days preceding the election and on Election Day.
Absentee Signature Verification
There's also the task of verifying absentee ballots to make sure the person who submitted the ballot is actually who they say they are and that they're registered to vote.
HERE'S WHAT WE CAN VERIFY
To complete this verification, clerks use the signature that is on the returned ballot - matching it to the signature that is on file with the state.
Under Michigan law MCL 168.765 and even the state's constitution, clerks are mandated to verify the submitted signature by judging that it matches the one on file in the state's records.
When a voter applies for an absentee ballot, their application signature is compared to the state's file. Subsequently, given this previous level of verification, signatures on absentee ballots can be compared to either the signature on the application or the one on the state's file.
"Overall, I think signature verification is a hallmark of our absentee voting process," Republican Ottawa County Clerk Justin Roebuck said in last week's press call. "That is where every single absentee ballot that comes in is signature-verified against the qualified voter file."
"Early voting has a robust system of checks and balances, where we have a live database ensuring that only one vote per person is cast throughout the early voting period, as well as in absentee voting," he continued. "And then Election Day has a lot of checks and balances in that process as well."
The state provides training for clerks on verification.
Absentee Ballot Return Timeline
Claims surrounding the 2020 election and the time it took to finish the count spurred questions about how late a ballot can be postmarked and submitted before it can no longer be counted.
HERE'S WHAT WE CAN VERIFY
Under state law MCL 168.765, mailed ballots received by 8 PM on election day are the only ones that must be delivered to a precinct's absent voter counting board to be counted. And according to the Secretary of State, only mailed absentee ballots that are received by the clerk's office by 8 p.m. that day will be counted.
The only instance in which such a ballot could be received later is if the voter goes to their polling place to cast the ballot in person on Election Day, in which case a postmark and the typical receiving process would not be utilized. Under these rules, as long as someone is in line at their polling place by 8 p.m. on Election Day to cast their vote, they will be allowed to do so.
Military and overseas ballots can be received later, but they still need to be postmarked by Election Day.
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Overall, in the lead-up to what many expect to be a contentious Election Day with the makings of 2020, officials like Lyons and Roebuck are working to instill confidence through knowledge where they can.
"We have bipartisan teams who are your friends and neighbors - my family, friends and neighbors - people who you know are at little league with us on the weekends and go to church with us," Roebuck said last week. "These are the people who are actually working and doing this job, and, ultimately, they receive robust training."
"I mean, they are going through the training process, understanding Michigan election law," he continued. "They're swearing an oath to uphold Michigan's elections and the United States Constitution and the laws of the state of Michigan as well, and I think there are just many checks and balances through this system that verify one vote per eligible voter, and that is the critical thing that all of us are working toward in every county and every municipality in Michigan."
While this VERIFY revolves solely around absentee ballot processes, you can expect 13 ON YOUR SIDE to continue to inform as to election practices in the leadup to Election Day.