More than 430,000 signatures were recently submitted for a 2018 ballot initiative to expand voting in Michigan by allowing absentee ballots to be cast for any reason and implementing measures such as same-day voter registration.

Currently, absentee voters must be at least 60 years old, out of town when the polls are open or unable to vote on Election Day because of a physical disability, religious tenets or incarceration.

Organizers of the initiative Promote the Vote say the amendment to the Michigan Constitution “would provide a common sense approach to safeguarding our elections, puts voters first, and removes barriers for working families.”

Promote the Vote outlines seven key aspects of the amendment:

• Protect the right to vote a secret ballot.

• Ensure military service members and overseas voters get their ballots in time for their votes to count.

• Provide voters with the option to vote straight party.

• Automatically register citizens to vote at the Secretary of State’s office unless the citizen declines.

• Allow a citizen to register to vote anytime with proof of residency.

• Provide all registered voters access to an absentee ballot for any reason.

• Ensure the accuracy and integrity of elections by auditing election results.

“All these updates would make voting more of a sure thing in Michigan, guaranteeing a fair and accessible process,” said Desire Vincent, associate director of communications, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Michigan. “Following in the footsteps of civil rights leaders, we’re continuing their work today. We want every eligible person who can vote to vote, and we want to ensure that every vote will count.”

The ACLU of Michigan, the League of Women Voters and the NAACP’s state and Detroit branches are reported as organizers of the amendment initiative, which exceeded the 316,000 valid signatures needed for the amendment to appear on the ballot this November. The Secretary of State will review the signatures over the next 60 days and present its findings to the Board of State Canvassers, whose members will ultimately determine whether it makes the ballot. Opponents of the proposal will also have the opportunity to file a challenge. Supporters said their next steps are to educate voters about the plan to ensure its passage if it gets on the ballot.

In the past ten mid-term elections, Michigan turn-out has never exceeded 25 percent of eligible voters. The 2014 election was among the lowest of the latest ten years with 17.4 percent participation.

"Democracy is most effective when the most possible people participate," said Kary Moss, executive director, ACLU of Michigan, during a news conference. "Voting should be easier, it should be accessible and it should be something that everybody can do."

“This is not a Democratic issue. It is not a Republican issue. It is not an Independent issue," said the Rev. Wendell Anthony, Detroit NAACP. “Voting is an American issue.”

Want more?

Explore Michigan’s voter turnout history.

Learn more about Promote the Vote.

Read about other initiatives expected on the ballot.