KALAMAZOO (WKZO-AM) — There is more to voting than just showing up at the polls on Tuesday and filling in the dots.
There is a lot more riding on the vote on Tuesday than just who will sit in the White House for the next four years. Aside from the presidential race, there are votes for Congressional candidates and state house seats with democrats vying in both chambers to reclaim the majority from Republicans.
Local County Commission seats will all be filled and we will be choosing sheriffs, prosecutors, county clerks, treasurers and drain commissioners. These are all officials who are responsible for direct services that citizens rely on every day and spend a good share of the taxes paid locally.
There are seats on the state Supreme Court that need filling.
Michigan voters say that education is one of their top issues this year, but how many know that local school board and college trustees will also be chosen on Tuesday. Many voters will also pick the people who oversee the operation of local libraries as well.
Households in Kalamazoo were recently mailed copies of the ballots they will see when they walk into the polls on Tuesday. It’s a simple matter for anyone in Michigan to get a copy of their ballot off the internet, so they won’t be surprised by the choices they will be asked to make.
Click here to get to the website.
If you haven’t voted in a really long while your polling place may have moved or your voter registration may no longer be valid, particularly if you have moved. You can check online.
Click here to check on your registration status.
Voters may also be surprised by who is not on the ballot. They may find they have wasted a lot of time sitting through TV ads for candidates they would love to vote for or against, but who don’t represent them.
Take a look, do some research and then vote.
Voters with party loyalties will also have the option just to check one box and pick all the candidates from one party, if that is their preference. It’s an option that had to be won in court this year after legislators tried to change the rules for that.
For the first time in many Novembers, there will be no voter initiatives on the ballot. Changes in the rules for getting a measure on the ballot now make it exceedingly difficult for anyone or any citizens group to gather enough signatures in the time allowed.
Many groups tried and every one of them failed this year.
Absentee voters have until 8 p.m. Tuesday to get their ballot to their local clerk’s office.
Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m.
