Already voted for McMorrow? Here's how to "spoil" your absentee ballot for the Aug. 3 primary election.
The timing of state Sen. Mallory McMorrow's suspension of her U.S. Senate campaign means she is listed on Michigan's Aug. 4 Democratic primary ballot – and that some people may have already cast ballots for her nomination.
McMorrow made her decision public on Sunday, adding that she will support whoever does win the party nomination to take on former Rep. Mike Rogers, a Republican, in the November election.
Michigan's Aug. 4 election is a primary for races including the state's congressional seats and the governor's race. The general election is on Nov. 3.
The absentee ballots for the primary were mailed in late June to those who requested them, and her name is listed on the Democratic Party side of the ballot.
Absentee ballots are available starting 40 days before an election. That option became more popular after a voter initiative passed in 2018 regarding voting rules and procedures in the state. Michigan residents still have time to return their absent voter ballots. Early in-person voting has not yet started.
That leaves the question of what someone can do if they have already marked their ballot for McMorrow and would like to change it to another candidate.
The process for handling that change is called spoiling the ballot, the Michigan Secretary of State's office said.
If you have not returned a completed ballot
If a voter has not returned their ballot to the city or township clerk handling their local election details, the voter can surrender the ballot or sign a statement confirming that it was lost or destroyed, and vote in person at an early voting site or on Election Day.
An absentee ballot that has not been returned to the clerk may be spoiled in person at the clerk's office until 4 p.m. on the Monday prior to the election. In this case, that's Aug. 3.
If you have returned a completed ballot
There is a tighter deadline if a ballot has already been sent to the clerk's office. Those ballots can only be spoiled if the voter submits a written request to their city or township clerk. The voter must sign the request and indicate whether they would like a new absentee ballot mailed to them or picked up in person at the clerk's office.
If the ballot has been returned to the clerk, the deadline for spoiling the ballot is 5 p.m. on the second Friday before the election. In this case, that's July 24.
