Michigan Primary Voters Must Ask for Party Ballot on March 8

On Tuesday March 8, Michigan voters will have an opportunity to vote in the state's primary. The state takes its place in the primary schedule on March 8, after states like Iowa and New Hampshire, Nevada, as well as the multi-state Super Tuesday primary (this Tuesday, March 1).

Michigan's primary is a closed primary, which requires voters to complete an application on March 8 at the polls that states which party ballot they wish to use - Democrat or Republican.

In an interview Friday on The Richard Piet Show on WBCK, Michigan Secretary of State Ruth Johnson misspoke, indicating a party declaration was not necessary on March 8. Calhoun County Clerk Anne Norlander provided the on-air correction (Hear Norlander and Calhoun County director of elections Teri Loew discuss the March 8 primary process in a prior interview; they address the primary at about two minutes into the discussion).

A Q&A on the 2016 Michigan presidential primary from the State of Michigan Bureau of Elections can be found here.

Both Johnson and Norlander encourage presidential primary voters to be clear about the primary candidate for whom they intend to vote, as the ballots were printed ahead of time, and some candidates have dropped out of the race since. A vote for a candidate who has suspended their campaign will not count.

Hear The Richard Piet Show weekday mornings from 5:30-9 on WBCK.