Absentee, early voting more popular in Michigan's primary than Election Day voting
Voter turnout in Michigan's primary election on Tuesday was just under 22% of registered voters, according to the Michigan Secretary of State's voting dashboard.
But voting trends are skewing toward absentee ballots and early in-person voting after voting procedures were updated in recent years. During Tuesday's election, far more people chose either absentee ballots or early in-person voting than traditional Election Day in-person voting, the Secretary of State data shows.
Michigan has long allowed absentee voting, but initially under specific rules. Voters approved a ballot issue in November 2018 that allowed absentee voting without providing a reason, and the changes were set before the COVID-19 pandemic started to impact public activity in 2020. Voters can also request to be placed on a permanent absentee ballot list.
Michigan voters then approved an early in-person voting option in November 2022, mirroring procedures already in effect in several other states. Early voting was first used during the 2024 presidential primary.
The statewide races included Democratic and Republican primaries for governor and U.S. Senate. There were also primary races for U.S. House of Representatives seats. The general election is on November 3.
How people voted
Of the 7,359,866 active registered voters statewide for the August 2026 election, they voted in the following manner:
Absentee ballots returned: 1,380,701.
Early in-person voting participation: 139,608.
Election Day in-person voting: 83,263.
Voter turnout by county
Overall voter turnout by county in Southeast Michigan is as follows:
- Lapeer: 19%
- Lenawee: 19.8%
- Livingston: 27.7%
- Macomb: 21%
- Monroe: 17.8%
- Oakland: 26.8%
- St. Clair: 19.6%
- Washtenaw: 29.1%
- Wayne: 19.9%
General election turnout
General elections with Congressional and/or presidential races tend to have higher turnout, with the November 2024 election seeing an overall 77.9% voter turnout in Michigan.
During the November 2024 election, the Secretary of State's office reported 7,310,017 active registered voters. There were 2,244,123 ballots cast on Election Day; 2,232,721 absentee ballots submitted; and 1,214,391 early voting ballots cast.
