Absentee Voting

The City Clerk’s Office maintains a list of voters who are interested in automatically receiving an absent voter ballot for every election. 

Ballots will be sent by first-class mail for any ballot application received by 5 p.m. the Friday before an election.  Absentee ballots after this date will only be issued In-person at the clerk’s office.

Voters can bring in their application and receive a ballot from 8:00 am – 4:00 pm on the Saturday before the Election and on the Monday before Election Day from 8:00 am – 4:00 pm. If requesting an absentee ballot on the Monday before Election Day, the ballot will be issued but the voter is prohibited from leaving with the ballot.

Permanent Ballot List

Individuals that are interested in receiving an Absentee Ballot prior to every election may fill out a Permanent Ballot Application. Once the Permanent Ballot Application has been received and verified by the Clerk, an absentee ballot application will no longer be required to be filled out for future elections. There are no requirements to be placed on this list and you will still have the option to vote in person at the polls for every election if you so choose. This is a one (1) time sign up.

Formally, the Absent Voter Application List, where an application was sent out every election year, has been discontinued. If a voter wishes to receive an absentee ballot, and does not wish to apply for the permanent ballot list, an AV application will need to be completed for every election moving forward.

1. It is the Permanent Ballot voters responsibility to notify the City Clerk of any temporary address they would like their ballot mailed other than their home address (PO Box, vacation home, etc.) as ballots cannot be forwarded by the post office.
2. Voters opting to be on the Permanent Ballot list will remain on the list until they are no longer eligible to vote in Michigan, or until they request, in writing, that they wish to be removed from the list.

Ballot Possession

State law limits the persons who may be in lawful possession of an absent voter ballot (not yet voted or voted) to:

1. The voter
2. A member of the voter's immediate family who has been asked to return the ballot
3. A person residing in the voter's household who has been asked to return the ballot
4. A person whose job it is to handle mail
5. The clerk or other authorized election official

A person in illegal possession of an absent voter ballot (voted or not yet voted) is guilty of a felony.

 Important Dates for Absentee Voters

• Last day to request Absentee Ballots by mail: 5pm the Friday before each election
• Last day to request Absentee Ballots in-person at the City Clerk's Office: 4pm on the Monday before each election
• City Clerk's Office will be open 8am-4pm the Saturday before each election 
• Voters whose ballots have not been returned, and who wish to spoil their ballots and be issued a new ballot through the mail, may do so until 4:30pm the Friday before Election Day. If those voters wish to spoil their ballots and obtain new ballot in person at the City Clerk's Office, they may do so up until 4pm the Monday before Election Day. 

Military/Overseas Voters

If you are in the Military or an American Overseas, please visit fvap.gov/military-voter/overview for further information and to request an absentee ballot via the Federal Post Card Application (FPCA).