New Plan Will Bring Convenient Voting to Busy Michiganians Michigan citizens should be encouraged to participate in the election process, and their right to vote should not be limited. Unfortunately, many find voting to be more of a hassle than it should be. Balancing a full-time job (or sometimes two jobs), a family, daily errands, and rush-hour traffic are just some of the reasons getting to the voting booth can be difficult. Add the rising cost of gas, or unforeseen circumstances like illness or bad weather, and some people might decide that voting just isn’t a priority. Voting should be a priority. We all have the right to vote, and every eligible voter over the age of 18 should be exercising that right. Voting is the most effective way to have a say in what happens in Michigan and around the country. This election year stands to draw record turnout, with hundreds of thousands of new people voting. We already anticipate challenges in accommodating large crowds at the polling stations. This fall we will elect leaders who will serve our state and our nation for several years to come, and everyone should be able to vote and be a part of the decision process regardless of the challenges they face in their daily lives. To remove barriers to voting, Senator Gilda Jacobs and I are calling on the Senate Campaign and Election Oversight Committee to hold a hearing on and pass Senate Bill 12, a no reason absentee voting plan I’m sponsoring which would allow all eligible voters to vote by absentee ballot. If some citizens can vote absentee, everyone should be able to. In allowing absentee voting for everyone, we hope to increase voter turnout and decrease election costs, and create a more efficient and effective election process. Twenty-eight other states and Washington, D.C. have similar laws that give their citizens choices, and we want Michigan voters to have those same choices. If we don't allow no reason absentee voting we're putting the citizens of Michigan at a disadvantage in having their votes heard this presidential election year. Absentee voting gives you more time to look over your ballot, and offers the freedom to vote from home and mail the ballot in and be done with it. That means no more worrying about beating traffic on your lunch hour or waiting in a long line at the polling station after work.
July 01, 2008 by Senator Liz Brater
Posted in Elections, Voting Rights
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