Both federal law and the Michigan Constitution require, that no later than 45 days before the election, clerks transmit ballots to military and overseas (MOVE) voters who have applied for ballots. The deadline to transmit ballots for the Aug. 6, 2024 Primary is Saturday, June 22, 2024. This deadline always falls on a Saturday and requires strict compliance, meaning that, unlike other deadlines in the election law, the Saturday MOVE deadline does not get bumped back to Monday. You must transmit ballots by Saturday. The QVF Helpdesk will be available from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 22 to assist clerks with questions about using the QVF to issue MOVE ballots. 

If something occurs in your jurisdiction that prohibits you from meeting this deadline (for example, litigation delays or ballot printing), please email Adam Fracassi (MDOS-BOERegulatory@michigan.gov) as soon as possible.

Download the MOVE Compliance Report

To avoid missing the MOVE deadline, there are many tools available in QVF – including a report that details every MOVE voter in your jurisdiction. The information in the report is populated by the information you have entered in the individual voter’s QVF profile. You can find it under the Reports tab, titled “Military and Overseas Voter Compliance Report.”

Verify the information on the report

Once you have located the report, ensure that every MOVE voter is properly entered into QVF. If you have a MOVE voter who does not appear on the spreadsheet, then the MOVE status in the voter’s profile needs to be updated. A voter appearing on this report is currently registered as a MOVE voter. If the voter is an overseas civilian who has returned to the U.S., you should clear their UOCAVA status. Otherwise, the voter should receive a ballot. All requests for a MOVE ballot submitted on or after Nov. 7, 2023, are valid for every election in 2024. In other words, MOVE voters are not required to submit a separate request for each election in 2024. Note that with the passage of Proposal 2022-2, all voters (including MOVE voters) may now complete a single application to be mailed an absent voter ballot for all future elections. However, MOVE voters must submit an application such as a FPCA each year to ensure MOVE protections and allow enough time for the ballot to be returned.

What happens if the deadline is missed?

For all timely requested ballots, if you send a MOVE ballot late, the MOVE/UOCAVA voter is provided with an extension of time equivalent to the number of days the clerk was late in delivering the ballot, so long as the ballot is postmarked by Election Day. The MOVE ballots received during the extension period shall be counted and tabulated in the final results. MCL 168.759a(16).   

Also note that Proposal 2022-2 provided a required six-day grace period following Election Day, during which MOVE ballots postmarked by Election Day are considered timely received.  

Update your contact information

After the deadline, BOE staff will review this report and reach out to local clerks to troubleshoot any issues that may occur. You may also receive a call from your county clerk. Please make sure you are checking your email that has been provided in eLearning or update it if necessary.   

Be sure to contact us with any questions you may have. We are here to support you, so if you are running into problems, do not hesitate to email Adam Fracassi or Robin Hiar at MDOS-BOERegulatory@michigan.gov.

Beginning with the August election, the Election Day EPB will be able to quickly record a voter bringing their AV ballot to the Election Day polling place for tabulation. If a voter brings their AV ballot into the Election Day polling place to place into a tabulator themselves, election inspectors will record this in the EPB using a new “Voter Tabulated AV” button. This functionality will mirror the “Convert Absentee Voting” functionality in the Early Voting EPB and automatically adjust the EPB ballot summary, replacing the previous “AV to ED” workaround in place for the February and May 2024 elections. An updated “Voter Tabulation of AV Ballots on Election Day” guide will soon be available in eLearning.

BOE is continuing to feature a series of videos, events, links, and articles designed to increase familiarity with general accessibility requirements and best practices.

As election officials, it is critical that we support all individuals’ right to vote and provide the necessary resources to help voters feel more engaged and confident.

We believe that this series will be educational and help us all continue to ensure that everyone can vote privately and independently whether they vote at a polling place or at home. We encourage you to review the previous accessibility spotlights and use these videos in your trainings.

In our newest installment, the BOE has developed a single page informational sheet that can be passed along to voters or posted in the clerk’s office to help further educate individuals on the Voter Assist Terminal (VAT). Please keep in mind this is not yet approved for placement inside our polling places on Election Day. The single page informational sheet can be found in the eLearning Center. Questions on this and other ADA topics can as always be emailed to ADAVoting@michigan.gov.

Early Voting Reimbursement Assistant: This general office assistant position functions as administrative support for the reimbursement and grant management programs for the Michigan Bureau of Elections (BOE) created because of the passage and implementation of Proposal 22- 2. The position will provide support with grant processing throughout all stages of the grant reimbursement plan, including: receiving, assessing, and tracking payment/check/reimbursement requests; documenting all inquiries and/or proposals; assuring that submitted documentation meets all State and legal requirements; and maintaining accurate and timely records; and assisting Bureau staff and Department of State Finance and Procurement staff in processing reimbursements. The position also provides technical assistance in answering questions about the grant, reimbursement process, and related security issues to local officials. The Bureau is recruiting for 3 vacancies. Posting closes at 11:59pm on June 10^th.

BOE is accepting proof ballots for conditional approval as to form for the Aug. 6 election. Conditional approval can help counties, local jurisdictions and vendors have more lead time to have absent voter ballots available for voters starting 45/40 days before Aug. 6 as needed. Ballot proofs should be submitted to Melissa Myles at Mylesm5@Michigan.gov and cc: Dave Tarrant at tarrantd2@michigan.gov. Please note that under the Michigan Constitution, the Michigan Legislature may add proposed constitutional amendments to the ballot as late as June 7. The BOE is not aware of any efforts to add constitutional amendments to the August ballot at this time but cannot guarantee that the Michigan Legislature will not do so. BOE approval of ballot formats will therefore be conditional based on no additional state-level measures being added to the ballot.

Once BOE approves the form of the ballot, it is imperative that county and local clerks employ a rigorous proofing process of the ballot’s content:

• Counties and municipalities should establish points of contact and timelines for the review of ballots to ensure that every ballot style is reviewed by both the county and municipal clerk prior to printing.
• Counties should communicate with neighboring counties about any school district language in school districts that cross county lines.
• Split precincts and any district numbers that have changed should be carefully reviewed. Ensure all ballot-style splits are accounted for.
• All “vote for” numbers should be reviewed to verify the correct numbers.

All local office partial terms should be reviewed to ensure they are included on the ballot.

June 7 is the deadline for cities and townships to establish, move, or abolish a polling place for the Aug. 6 Primary Election.

As a reminder, the moving of an Early Voting site or polling place requires:

• Township board or city council/commission approval
• Notice to voters
• Notice of the change posted at the old polling location

Clerks, who have not already done so, should verify that all polling places they plan to use will be available for Aug. 6. If any polling places change, this information must be updated in QVF.