Michigan primary 2024: What to know about Election Day

Michigan’s presidential primary is Tuesday and polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
You can still register to vote in person on Election Day, but it’s too late to mail absentee ballots
Donald Trump and Joe Biden headline the Republican and Democratic primary fields

Update:

Michigan voters will help decide Democratic and Republican presidential nominees this week as the state’s primary period ends on Election Day.

The statewide contest will be settled earlier than usual this year because the Democratic-controlled Michigan Legislature moved up the primary date from early March to the fourth Tuesday of February.

The primary was also the first statewide election to feature a nine-day early voting period, which ended Sunday. Between early and absentee voting, hundreds of thousands of Michiganders have already cast ballots.

Related:

For everyone else who still wants to vote, here’s what you need to know.

Where and how to vote

In-person voting begins Tuesday at 7 a.m. and ends at 8 p.m. But you can still vote after that if you are in line by 8 p.m. If you’re unsure where your polling location is, look it up here.

You’ll be asked to show identification using either a driver license or state ID, a U.S. passport, a Military ID with a photo, student identification with a photo from a high school college or a tribal identification card with photo.

You can still vote if you don’t have an ID but will be required to sign an affidavit attesting to your identity..

Register to vote

Michigan now allows same-day voter registration. So if you haven’t already registered, you can still do so at your local township or city clerk until 8 p.m. on Election Day.

To be eligible to vote in Michigan, you must:

Be a citizen of the U.S.
Have lived in the city or township they are registering in for at least 30 days before the election
Not be serving a jail or prison sentence
At least 18 years old

You’ll need to verify eligibility to register to vote by showing a Michigan driver license or state ID, utility bill, bank statement, paycheck or government check, or any other government document.

After eligibility is verified, you’ll submit an application to be processed by the city clerk.

Early voting and absentee

Michigan wrapped up its first-ever statewide early voting period on Sunday. Localities were required to provide at least nine consecutive days of in-person early voting, but that’s done now.

If you still have an absentee ballot, don’t mail it because it won’t arrive by the time the polls close at 8 p.m. Instead, bring your absentee ballots to your clerk’s office or put it in a dropbox to ensure it is counted.

Who’s on the presidential primary ballot?

The presidential field has narrowed considerably since Michigan ballots were printed, so you’re going to see a lot of candidates who have already dropped out of the race.

You can choose whether to vote in the Democratic primary or the Republican primary, but not both. Third-party nominees will be decided later at conventions, and independents can petition for the general election too.

On the Democratic side, it’s President Joe. Biden vs. U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips. Marianne Williamson is still on the primary ballot despite dropping out.

Among Republicans, you’ll see seven candidates, but only three are still running: Former President Donald Trump, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and Texas businessman Ryan Binkley.

In either primary, you can also choose to vote “uncommitted,” which would largely serve as a symbolic gesture.

You can also look up other local issues that might be on your ballot.

Read more about the Michigan primary