BOE Closed Next Monday

The Bureau of Elections will be closed on Monday, May 27 in observance of Memorial Day.  The next News Update will be Tuesday, May 28.

Upgrade to Windows 10 

Microsoft will no longer support Windows 7 beginning January 14, 2020. Take inventory of any QVF or EPB computer(s) in your office currently using Windows 7 and upgrade them to Windows 10 as soon as you are able.

Taking this step soon is necessary since Microsoft will no longer provide support for Windows 7 users in the following ways:

• Security updates
• Technical support
• Correcting software bugs

Microsoft has been providing users with the message shown below. Users are referred to Microsoft.com/windows7 for more information.

Website Changes

This week, the Michigan Department of State's website (including the Bureau of Elections' web pages) will have navigation menus on the top of the screen instead of the left hand side of the screen. The content will remain the same until further notice.

However, Bureau of Elections' staff have been working diligently to update content to make it consistent with the changes of Proposal 18-3. All counties and local jurisdictions need to do the same. Important items you must update on your website include:

• correction of registration deadlines (instead of 30 days, it is now 15 days for methods of registration other than in person at the local clerk's office, which goes through Election Day)
• inclusion of new option to register in the final 14 days of an election and on Election Day with the local clerk
• removal of the requirement to provide a reason to vote absentee
• references to the obsolete Must Vote in Person provision
• extended hours for registration and absentee voting the weekend before the election (must be posted when specific hours are determined)

QVF Refresh Update

The QVF Refresh Software Release for May 17, 2019 is as follows:

Election Inspector.

• CSV Report of inspectors is available for both the Global Pool and the Inspectors Assigned.
• Student Inspectors can be edited and deleted from the Global Pool now.

AV List. Changed report to have a consistent number of lines per page and increased the font.

Election Security - Learning Opportunity

The Humphrey School of Public Affairs is hosting an Election Security: Preparing for 2020 Webinar on May 29 at 1 p.m. This webinar will be a discussion of a few easy and inexpensive improvements you should consider making in preparing for 2020. The webinar is free. Information on how to register can be found at this link. 

BOE Question of the Week:

How long do I keep voter registration forms completed by voters that registered in-person at the Clerk's Office on Election Day or in the final 14 days before the election?

Answer: Six years. MCL 168.811 requires all voter registration applications executed by applicants who register in-person at the Clerk's Office on Election Day or in the final 14 days before the election to be retained for six years.

Have a question you'd like to see
in the Question of the Week?  Send it to elections@michigan.gov.