Michigan Senate Dems pass Voting Rights Act bill package ahead of midterm election

Michigan Senate Democrats passed a series of bills establishing the Michigan Voting Rights Act to protect voting rights in the state. 

On June 16, lawmakers passed Senate Bills 961-964, with sponsors including Sens. Stephanie Chang, D-Detroit; Erika Geiss, D-Detroit; Darrin Camilleri, D-Trenton; and Jeremy Moss, D-Bloomfield. 

"Michigan voters deserve to have their rights explicitly protected," Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II said. "We must protect our voters from discrimination and keep our state and federal elections free and fair." 

The bills create a state voting rights act that prohibits state agencies or local governments from infringing on citizens' right to vote in Michigan.  

The bills included in the package would also implement the "Voting and Elections Database and Institute Act," creating a research and information center focused on voting systems and election administration, and would require local governments in areas with limited English proficiency and a single, shared language to provide language assistance.  

"A strong, representative democracy depends on every voter being able to access and understand the voting process," Chang said. "The Michigan Voting Rights Act ensures every eligible voter — of every language, race, ability, or zip code — can cast their vote accurately and without fear of being silenced, thereby increasing participation in our elections and strengthening democracy for all of us." 

This effort builds on past initiatives to secure increased voting rights for Michigan residents, such as when Gov. Gretchen Whitmer approved Proposition 2 in 2023 to expand early voting rights. The legislation also responds to what Michigan Democrats said are efforts from the Trump administration to restrict access to mail-in voting and nationalize elections.  

The ACLU of Michigan released a statement supporting the passage of the Senate bills, citing that parts of the federal Voting Rights Act have been dismantled through Supreme Court cases such as Louisiana v. Callais.  

"The federal government is working in a targeted manner to erode and erase voting rights nationwide," said Loren Khogali, executive director of the ACLU of Michigan. "The Michigan Voting Rights Act takes important steps to fill in the gaps left in the wake of federal attempts to disenfranchise voters." 

Republican Sen. Ruth Johnson, R-Holly, proposed two amendments to the bills that would have eliminated language allowing candidates or individuals to enter polling locations to provide food and beverages to voters. Both amendments were defeated by Senate Democrats.  

"These bills would allow a candidate for office to walk right inside a polling location and pass out food and beverages to voters," Johnson said. "This is a gross invasion of voter privacy and destroys long-established norms about the sanctity of polling places in our state." 

Now that the bills have been passed in the Senate, they will head to the Michigan House.