GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Absentee ballots started going out across the state on Sept. 26 ahead of the presidential election in November.

“Voting in the 2024 general election has officially begun. And beginning today, ballots are available to every eligible citizen who wants to vote in this fall’s election,” Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said at a news conference in Detroit.

In order to get an absentee ballot, you must be a registered voter and submit an application through your local clerk’s office. That can be submitted either online or in person. The state advises requesting an absentee ballot no later than Oct. 21 so there’s time for it to get to you and for you to return it.

Benson said more than 1.8 million people have already requested their ballot, including about 1.6 million voters on the state’s permanent absentee ballot list.

If you have submitted an application for an absentee ballot, you can track where it is on the state’s website. Benson also announced the rollout of a new option to sign up for emails with ballot tracking updates.

“There are three ways to sign up: When registering to vote, when submitting your online application or by visiting Michigan.gov/vote and clicking on the signup link,” Benson explained. “Ballot tracking is an important security feature for those choosing to vote from home. It enables voters to see directly where their ballot is in the process at all times and learn exactly when it has been accepted for tabulation by their clerk.”

When your absentee envelope arrives, there will be a ballot, secrecy sleeve and ballot marking instructions inside of the envelope. Be sure to follow the instructions. If you make a mistake, you can request a new ballot from your clerk.

There are many options on how you can turn in your absentee ballot, including:

• Mailing it in. The state recommends doing this no later than two weeks out from the election.
• Filling it out and completing it at your clerk’s office.
• Putting it in the tabulator during early in-person voting, which must start statewide by Oct. 26 at the latest.
• Putting it in the tabulator at your polling place on Election Day.

Even after you submit your absentee ballot, you can contact your clerk in writing to spoil it if you change your mind.

Your absentee ballot must be received by the clerk’s office by 8 p.m. Election Day in order to be counted, with an exception for overseas and military ballots.

For more information on how to register and vote, go to Michigan.gov/vote. You can go to Michigan.gov/factcenter to get answers to your questions about how the election works. The election is Nov. 5.

CLERK: ‘ABSENTEE BALLOT PROCESS IS SECURE’

Justin Roebuck, the Ottawa County clerk, said that 59% of county voters cast their ballots by mail during the November 2020 election, in the middle of the pandemic. In the August 2020 primary, 68% of voters took advantage of that option.

“Our voters today have more options than ever to cast a ballot, and that’s really a great convenience for them,” he told News 8.

Michigan voters also now have the right to vote early in person for at least nine days leading up to Election Day. Ottawa County has teamed up with cities and townships to run four early voting sites across the county in the days before the election.

Voters can also submit their absentee ballots through a drop box location, located at their local city or township hall. Michigan law requires at least one drop box per 15,000 voters in a jurisdiction.

“I think it’s really important for our voters to know the absentee ballot process is a secure process,” Roebuck said.

Roebuck said the drop box locations are under 24/7 video surveillance. And before an absentee ballot is counted, the signature is verified.

“Our local clerks are ensuring the signature that’s on the back of your absentee ballot envelope matches the signature that’s on file in the qualified voter file,” he said.

He explained there is also a chain of custody requirement for local election clerks, ensuring they document how they empty mail-in ballot boxes and where they store them.

“All of that information has to be recorded,” he said.

No matter how you vote, Roebuck stressed that it’s important to have a plan. Beyond the presidential election, there are many local races that affect where you live.

“There are many, many candidates, a lot of proposals in local communities as well,” Roebuck said. “So it’s always important to check out what’s on your ballot before you walk into the precinct.”

*Correction: A previous version of this article misstated the deadline to request an absentee ballot. The state advises submitting a request by Oct. 21, but that is not a hard deadline.