by: WOODTV.com TEAM
UNDATED (WOOD) — A spokes person with the Michigan Secretary of State’s office said Wednesday the number of absentee ballots returned for the Aug. 4 presidential primary has already surpassed the total number for the 2016 primary.
The SoS said that with 14 days left to the election, 607,079 ballots had already been returned. Some 1,842,866 ballots were sent to voters.
Comparing those numbers just 14 days prior to the 2016 primary, about 510,800 ballots had been issued and 215,500 sent back. In all, by election day 2016, returned absentee ballots numbered 484,094.
Unlike for elections past, this year the SoS worked to send out absentee ballot applications to every single one of Michigan’s 7.7 million registered voters. The state is encouraging absentee voting amid the coronavirus pandemic as it urges people to stay away from large gatherings.
This is also the first presidential election cycle since Michigan residents approved voting changes to make it easier to cast ballots absentee.
>>Online:Michigan Election and Voter Information Center
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