Voting, Step By Step
MCL 168.497 — by mail or online until the fifteenth day before, and in person through election day
The fifteenth day. An individual not registered may apply in person, by mail, or online until the fifteenth day before an election.
The last 14 days. From the fourteenth day before an election through election day, an individual may register in person at the city or township clerk's office where they reside, with proof of residency such as a Michigan driver's license or state identification card.
At the polls. Before receiving a ballot, each registered elector presents identification for election purposes and signs an application with name, address, date of birth, and a statement of citizenship.
Without identification. An elector without identification for election purposes signs an affidavit to that effect before an election inspector and is allowed to vote, subject to challenge as the act provides.
Absentee and early voting, and what a provisional ballot needs in order to be counted, are set out in other sections that are not on this page. Whether a particular person is registered is a question for the local election office.
Sources for this section (2)
- MCL 168.497 — Registration, and registering in the last 14 days
- MCL 168.523 — Identification at the polls, and the affidavit
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Michigan attorney.