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Here’s how to get an absentee ballot for Michigan’s Aug. 6 primary election

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Here’s how to get an absentee ballot for Michigan’s Aug. 6 primary election


Want to vote in Michigan’s August primary election, but won’t be in town? Want to spend some time with your ballot at home? Or you remembered it’s hot and humid in Michigan in August, and you don’t want to step outside your house?

Good news: You can instead vote with an absentee ballot by mail or in person at your local election clerk’s office.

In Michigan, you don’t need a reason to request an absentee ballot. The state is one of 28 with what is called “no-excuse” absentee voting, which is pretty much what it sounds like: You don’t need a specific reason to ask for an absentee ballot.

Registered voters who have already completed applications to receive an absentee ballot for the upcoming Aug. 6 primary should start receiving their ballots in the mail this week.

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Here’s how to vote absentee from home, vacation or in-person at your clerk’s office:

How I can request a Michigan absentee ballot?

The simplest way to get an absentee ballot in Michigan is to request one online through the Secretary of State’s office at mvic.sos.state.mi.us/AVApplication.

To fill out that form, confirm your citizenship and authorize the Secretary of State’s office to send your digital signature (stored from your state ID or driver’s license) to your city or town. Fill out your info, matching it exactly to your driver’s license. From there, confirm your address and which elections you’d like a ballot for — there’s an election in August as well as in November. Here, you can confirm you want to join the “permanent ballot list,” which means you’ll automatically get an absentee ballot application in each election. Confirm your address, add your personal contact information, then submit. The process takes however long it takes you to fish out your driver’s license plus maybe two minutes.

It’s best to do this at least 15 days before an election to give your local clerk enough time to send you your ballot and to give yourself enough time to return it. Online applications can be submitted as late as 5 p.m. as the Friday before the election, but that might be cutting it close.

For the Aug. 6 election, absentee ballots come available June 27.

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I don’t want to request my ballot online.

There are other options as well. You can request one by mail. Fill out the application found at michigan.gov/sos/elections/voting/voters in whatever language is best for you (options include Arabic, Bengali, Farsi, Spanish, English and large-print English, as well as an accessible electronic application). Mail it in following the directions on the application or take it to your city, village or township clerk’s office in person.

It’s important you give your application enough time to arrive. They are due to your clerk’s office by 5 p.m. the Friday before the election (Aug. 2 for this upcoming primary). They can be returned by mail or in person, but the deadline is the same.

If you’re cutting it a little close or don’t want to use the mail, you can request your ballot in person at your clerk’s office. (If you’ve recently moved or you’re not otherwise registered, you can also do this at clerk’s office.) You can find your closest clerk by putting in your address at mvic.sos.state.mi.us/Voter/Index/#yourclerk.

How do I fill out an absentee ballot in Michigan?

The actual candidates and issues you choose are up to you, of course. But it’s important you follow some specific requirements so that your vote doesn’t get thrown out.

There will be written instructions included with your ballot. If you have questions, you can reach out to your local clerk.

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After that, make sure you put it in the secrecy sleeve which will come included with your ballot, and then in the return envelope. From there, you have to sign and date the return envelope. Make sure you sign in the right place with your signature on file (although you’re allowed to sign with a shortened version of your name, as long as the signature resembles the original — the Secretary of State’s office specifically lists “Bill” instead of “William” as an acceptable substitution) and list the correct date.

From there, you can drop it in the mail. It will be counted as long as it’s postmarked by Election Day and received within six days of the election. You can also drop it off in person, if you’d prefer, at the clerk’s office or at a drop box located around your city. You can look up those locations on the Secretary of State’s website.

More: ‘Whole new world’: 9 ways Michigan elections have changed

How can I trust my absentee ballot made it on time?

Registered voters can track their ballots through (you guessed it) the Secretary of State’s website. Put in your information, and there will be a box on the top right of the screen that will note whether your clerk has received your application or your ballot.

That website also lists drop box locations and when they’re accessible, as well as your polling place if you’d like to go in person.

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When will my ballot be counted?

If you live in a town or city with more than 5,000 people, your municipality may create what’s known as an Absentee Voter Counting Board. This group of election workers processes ballots for up to eight days before an election. (Smaller towns can also do this starting on the Monday before the election.)

Ballots that arrive within six days after Election Day but are still postmarked properly will be counted after.

More: Early voting. Absentee. Election Day votes. How ballots are counted in Michigan

Is absentee voting secure?

There are a lot of different systems in place to ensure that absentee voting is as secure as standard operation.

Clerks compare signatures between ballots and the signatures on file to compare, for example. The secrecy envelope helps to keep your vote private. Votes from people who die before Election Day, as long as the clerk is able to learn they are dead, are rejected.

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Michigan also uses something called the “qualified voter file” that tracks when a voter has turned in their ballot. It prevents clerks from issuing more than one ballot and also flags to them when more than one ballot from the same person has been returned. If someone were to request a second ballot after returning the first, the first is invalidated.

The Secretary of State’s office has a robust webpage dedicated to answering other questions about election security at michigan.gov/sos/elections/security.



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Michigan

Yaxel Lendeborg scores 29 points and No. 2 Michigan stays unbeaten with 101-83 win over Maryland

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Yaxel Lendeborg scores 29 points and No. 2 Michigan stays unbeaten with 101-83 win over Maryland


COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) — Yaxel Lendeborg had 29 points, a career-best nine assists and eight rebounds, and No. 2 Michigan rallied from a nine-point deficit Saturday night to defeat Maryland 101-83.

Aday Mara scored 18 points for the Wolverines (10-0, 2-0 Big Ten), who overcame a halftime deficit for the second time this season and the first since they beat TCU on Nov. 14.

Michigan scored 100 points for the fourth time in five games.

Diggy Coit made eight 3-pointers and scored 31 points for the Terrapins (6-5, 0-2), who lost center Pharrel Payne to a right leg injury late in the first half and forward Solomon Washington to ejection after he picked up his second technical foul early in the second half.

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Coit scored nine of Maryland’s first 10 points and 22 before the break, helping to prevent Michigan from opening a lead larger than six in the first half.

The Terps lost Payne, their leading scorer at 18.7 points a game, with 4:36 remaining before halftime. Yet Maryland stretched its lead from one to 50-45 at the midpoint, then expanded it to 56-47 on Elijah Saunders’ 3.

Washington, who had a first-half technical for celebrating a 3 in front of the Michigan bench, was called for a delay-of-game technical just after Saunders’ basket. His departure left the Terps without their two most experienced and imposing interior players.

Lendeborg took advantage, scoring the next eight points. Mara’s dunk with 14 minutes left made it 64-63 and gave the Wolverines the lead for good.

Elliot Cadeau’s layup with 21.2 seconds remaining got the Wolverines to 100 points for the fifth time this season.

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Up next

Michigan hosts La Salle on Dec. 21.

Maryland visits No. 24 Virginia on Dec. 20.

___

Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball

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Aquinas College expands automatic acceptance to 2 more West Michigan high schools

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Aquinas College expands automatic acceptance to 2 more West Michigan high schools


GRAND RAPIDS, MI – After beginning a direct admittance program at one West Michigan high school in November, Aquinas College has now expanded the program to cover more classrooms.

The guaranteed admission program, first implemented for graduates of West Catholic High School with a 2.0 GPA or above, has now been expanded to Catholic Central High School in Grand Rapids and Muskegon Catholic Central High School.

The partnership will apply to students from all three schools entering college in the fall of 2026.

The direct admission program was described by Aquinas College leaders as offering high school students a “clear path to college success” while also continuing to develop partnerships.

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Aquinas College, a private Catholic liberal arts institution located at 1700 Fulton St. E, was founded by the Dominican Sisters of Grand Rapids in 1886.

The college has enrolled 1,262 students during the 2025-26 academic year, and its new student numbers are up, with 419 new students on campus this fall, up from 311 in 2024-25.

The college’s overall enrollment total is just slightly under the approximately 1,300 students Aquinas recorded across its campus in 2023-24, according to a press release sent out in January 2025.

This year’s partnership announcements do not mark Aquinas’ first direct admittance deal.

The college also has a direct admit bachelor’s in nursing partnership with the University of Detroit Mercy, which allows students to take core curriculum courses at Aquinas and nursing classes from Detroit Mercy faculty.

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On Nov. 14, Aquinas announced its direct admittance deal with West Catholic High School.

The school, located at 1801 Bristol Ave. NW, enrolled just over 500 students as of the 2024-25 school year, according to an online school profile.

West Catholic President and CEO Jill Wierzbicki said the initiative simplifies the college application process and offers students a straightforward path to higher education.

On Nov. 20, Aquinas then announced it had also partnered with Grand Rapids’ Catholic Central High School, 319 Sheldon Blvd SE, which enrolls 567 students and is the oldest co-educational diocesan Catholic high school in the nation.

Brian Matzke, vice president for enrollment management, said there’s “no doubt that Aquinas here has had more graduates from Catholic Central than any other school in our history.”

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On Dec. 10, the college announced another partnership deal with Muskegon Catholic Central High School, 1145 W Laketon Ave., which enrolled just under 300 students in 2023-24, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

Jerry McDowell, Muskegon Catholic Central president, said both the high school and Aquinas share a “deep commitment to developing the whole student — academically, spiritually, and individually.

“This direct-admit program provides our graduates with an exceptional opportunity to transition confidently into higher education while maintaining the Catholic values that guide their formation,” McDowell said.

Aquinas’ listed price for traditional undergraduate tuition is $41,192, according to senior director of strategic communications Dave DeJonge.

Students are eligible for annual merit scholarships between $15,000-$25,000, depending on their GPA and housing status. Additional scholarships may be available. This applies to all students who are admitted to Aquinas.

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Matzke highlighted the direct admittance program’s easy transition from one West Michigan school to another, with those accepted to Aquinas able to live on campus or commute from home depending on what best fits their needs.

He also said a growing Grand Rapids job market, combined with support from the college’s career center, contributes to a 97% placement rate for graduates.



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Legal experts question University of Michigan’s role after charges against former HC Sherrone Moore

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Legal experts question University of Michigan’s role after charges against former HC Sherrone Moore


WASHTENAW COUNTY, Mich. – Former Michigan Wolverines head football coach Sherrone Moore appeared in court Friday on charges of stalking, home invasion, and breaking and entering, just days after being fired from his position.

The 39-year-old coach, who has no prior criminal history, was terminated by the university on Wednesday following an investigation that uncovered evidence of an inappropriate relationship with a staff member.

According to prosecutors, the charges stem from an incident that occurred after the victim, a University of Michigan staff member, ended her relationship with Moore on Monday (Dec. 8).

Following the breakup, Moore allegedly made numerous unwanted calls and texts to the victim.

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The situation escalated on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2025, when Moore allegedly forced his way into the victim’s Pittsfield Township apartment.

Prosecutors say he grabbed kitchen utensils and threatened to take his own life, allegedly telling the victim, “My blood is on your hands.”

“The totality of the behavior is highly threatening and highly intimidating. She was terrorized, your honor,” a prosecutor told the court during Friday’s arraignment.

Defense attorney Joseph Simon pushed back on prosecutors’ claims that Moore could be a threat to public safety.

“My client’s 39 years old, with zero prior criminal history, zero prior contact with the criminal justice system in any fashion,” Simon stated.

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Attorney Todd Flood, who practices both criminal defense and civil litigation, said the fallout within the university could continue depending on when the organization was first alerted about the relationship and how university athletic officials first responded.

“What did they know, when did they know it, and what did they do about it when they found out? Those are going to be the three major questions,” Flood said.

“The university could possibly have some culpability there, that they didn’t put a stop to this,” noted Flood, adding that the victim may have grounds to pursue action against both the university and Moore.

Flood said the stalking charge against Moore likely stems from a documented pattern of harassment.

“When there is a position where he is harassing, either via text messages, harassing via telephone calls, social media content, or showing up at a place where he doesn’t belong,” Flood said. “Those stalking charges are ones where you can show that pattern of conduct.”

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“He’s ultimately going to probably plead this case out, under some sort of either misdemeanor, or something that gives probation,” Flood said.

Moore posted his $25,000 bond Friday.

As part of his bond conditions, he must wear a GPS tether, undergo mental health treatment, and have no contact with the victim.

He is scheduled to appear in court in person on Jan. 22.

–> Jim Harbaugh talks Sherrone Moore’s firing, arrest after former Michigan football understudy posts bond

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