Absentee ballots could be processed earlier under bill OK'd by Michigan Senate

[RandySF]

Michigan senators approved a bill Tuesday that, if enacted into law, will allow clerks to begin processing absentee ballots earlier, likely cutting down on the amount of time needed to provide a final vote tally after the general election in November.

Even with this change, however, Michigan elections experts anticipate it still may take days to tabulate the millions of absentee ballots expected to be cast this year.

The measure, Senate Bill 757, allows clerks to start processing absentee ballots the day before the election. State Sen. Ruth Johnson, a Holly Republican and former secretary of state, sponsored the bill. The measure passed by a 34-2 vote with no discussion.

The bill does not allow clerks to start counting absentee ballots. Rather, the bill allows clerks to remove absentee ballots from their outer envelopes and start sorting them for counting on Election Day. The ballots need to remain in their secrecy sleeves until the morning of Election Day; if a ballot is not included in a secrecy sleeve, the bill allows clerks to place these ballots in a sleeve.


https://www.freep.com/story/news/politics/elections/2020/09/15/michigan-absentee-ballot-law/5802084002/

[jorgevlorgan]

1. Great news!

I hope it gets passed. I think this will help give us a better idea of who won on election night even though the final count will take a few days

[Ms. Toad]

3. Not really - if they weren't doing that already, their system is really behind the times

Many, if not most, states permit the ballots to be run into the tabulation machines - but prohibit pressing the tally button until the close of elections. That's why there is the chatter on election night about the early ballots being the absentee ones. They have been completely processed - all that remains is the push of a button.

Since these are still in their secrecy sleeves (a significant delay in processing, since feeding a ballot in from a secrecy sleeve is a painful process), this will still add hours to the process that takes seconds in many, if not most, jurisdicitons.

[jorgevlorgan]

4. I guess it still is a step in the right direction

[brooklynite]

2. This is why I never bought in to the "Republican States will ignore the election results" claims...

There are Republican Secretaries of State and Legislatures in competitive States that are acting responsibly, and aren't going to reflexively appoint alternative Elector slates regardless of the popular vote in their State.