MI Elections Board Rejects Voting Rights Proposal For November Ballot

MICHIGAN — A ballot initiative that would make voting easier and more accessible in Michigan failed to get a spot on the November ballot after elections were deadlocked during a Wednesday vote.

The Michigan Board of State Canvassers panel failed to pass the Promote the Vote proposal after a tie, with two Democrats voting in favor and two Republicans voting it down.

Challengers argued the initiative failed to clearly demonstrate which sections of the state's constitution it would repeal, while the two Democrats said any judicial questions surrounding the language of the ballot should be left up to a court.

While the voting rights initiative is off the November ballot for now, the board's decision is expected to be challenged in court. All ballot proposals must be turned in to the Secretary of State's office by Sept. 9.

"This is a disservice to the people of Michigan and is indicative of the obstructionist partisan politics that have taken over truly non-partisan issues like election reform and equal access to the ballot," Board President for Promote the Vote 2022 Khalilah Spencer said. "Sadly, despite the clear facts and the independent validation of our proposal by the Bureau of Elections, these two Board of State Canvassers’ members are standing in the way of Michigan voters having their say on this important proposal."

"Nonetheless, we are confident that the courts will remedy this needless and unjustified attempt to block our proposal," she added.

The voting rights ballot gained more 664,000 signatures from Michigan voters, of which election officials determined roughly 507,000 signatures are considered valid, more than the 200,000 needed for a constitutional amendment.

The Promote the Vote 2022 ballot proposal would:

• Recognize the fundamental right to vote without harassing conduct.
• Require military or overseas ballots to be counted if postmarked by Election Day.
• Provide voters the right to verify identity with photo ID or signed statement.
• Provide the voter right to a single application to vote absentee in all elections.
• Require state-funded absentee-ballot drop boxes, and postage for absentee applications and ballots.
• Provide that only election officials may conduct post-election audits.
• Require nine days of early in-person voting.
• Allow donations to fund elections, which must be disclosed.
• Require canvass boards to certify election results based only on the official records of votes cast.