Michigan lawmakers debating major changes to when certain elections are held

A state Senate committee voted Wednesday morning to move Michigan's regular primary election from August to May, a shift that could alter the political landscape in a battleground state.

Under current law, Michigan's primary, through which nominees for governor, U.S. Senate, U.S. House and seats in the Legislature are chosen by their parties' voters, takes place on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in August.

The 10-bill Senate package would eliminate the August election date, beginning in 2028, and move the regular primary three months earlier to the first Tuesday after the first Monday in May. The package would also make the February presidential primary date, currently used every four years, a regular election date.

The Senate Elections and Ethics Committee, chaired by Sen. Jeremy Moss, D-Bloomfield Township, voted 5-1 in favor of advancing the main proposal to the full Senate, which is controlled by Democrats.

Moss told reporters the primary date change was necessary after a series of election law overhauls in recent years, including allowing no-reason absentee voting and instituting in-person early voting, which made the November election process start earlier.

"It's just a big squeeze between closing out the August election and starting the November election," Moss said.

The Democratic-controlled Senate and the Republican-controlled House would have to approve the bills for them to make their way to Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's desk.

Some House Republicans have already voiced interest in the legislation, and Moss said he believes the changes can become law this year.

"There should be bipartisan support," Moss argued.

Jamie Roe, a longtime Republican political consultant from Macomb County, said he's supportive of moving the primary earlier. The change would increase voter participation in the primary because it would no longer occur during the summer vacation season, Roe said.

It would also provide challengers to incumbents more time to make their cases to voters, Roe said. The general election season would essentially be extended by three months, while the primary season would be shortened.

"It gives candidates more time to plan for the fall campaign," Roe said.

On Wednesday, one Republican committee member, Sen. Ed McBroom, R-Vulcan, voted in favor of the bills, while Sen. Ruth Johnson, R-Holly, voted in opposition.

Johnson, a former Michigan secretary of state, said she disagreed with the idea of making the February presidential primary a regular election date when votes on property tax millages could occur because it's "in the middle of winter."

"We're going to create more work for our clerks, and we know it's going to get a low turnout," Johnson said.

Likewise, House Speaker Matt Hall, R-Richland Township, told reporters Wednesday that he didn't plan to move the primary date.

"I just think we have bigger problems," Hall said.

The GOP-led House on Wednesday passed its own election bills seeking to limit school bond proposals and local property tax millages to the November general election, instead of May or August ballots.

Lansing Clerk Chris Swope said election officials were a little resistant to the regular February date. However, school groups had voiced concerns about whether the Michigan Department of Treasury would be able to make the timing of tax processing work if millage proposals were focused only on the May date, Swope said.

For years, clerks in Michigan have argued the August primary failed to provide them enough time to canvass results, resolve recounts and then prepare sufficiently for the November general election three months later. Most states, including neighboring Indiana and Ohio, have earlier primaries.

Clerks have said the timing challenges were exacerbated by constitutional amendments that changed state election law in 2018 and 2022, requiring in-person early voting, no-reason absentee voting and the timely distribution of absentee ballots to military personnel.

This year, for example, the primary takes place Aug. 4. Absentee ballots for the general election must be available to voters 51 days later on Sept. 24. Early voting begins across the state on Oct. 24.

Michigan House votes to limit school bond, tax hike elections

In the House later Wednesday, lawmakers voted 56-50 on legislation that would limit local property tax increases proposed by schools or local governments to the November election. The two bills were spearheaded by state Rep. Matt Maddock, R-Milford.

Republican lawmakers argued local millage elections in May and August traditionally have low turnout, making it difficult to have a fair vote on the measures, and the cost of holding those May and August elections is a burden when they could otherwise be combined with the larger November ballot.

“These are common sense guardrails that help ensure voters understand exactly what is being proposed before it appears on the ballot,” said state Rep. Josh Schriver, R-Oxford. “At the end of the day, this bill is about something simple: Transparency, predictability and making sure voters have a fair opportunity to participate when decisions about raising taxes are on the ballot.”

All but two Republicans voted for the bills and all Democrats present voted against it. The Republicans who voted against them were state Reps. Kathy Schmaltz of Jackson and Bradley Slagh of Zeeland.

Another bill from state Rep. Tim Kelly, R-Saginaw Township, would prohibit school districts from using any state school aid dollars for the costs associated with holding a school bond election. The districts, instead, would have to rely on private donations. The bill passed 57-49 Wednesday.

“Right now, we see a loophole where these vital resources are diverted away from the classroom and toward the administrative costs of special elections,” Kelly said. “We’ve all seen it: Elections held in the middle of May or August, often with low turnout, designed to push through bond proposals when the fewest number of taxpayers are looking.”

Schmaltz was the lone no vote among Republicans. All Democrats voted against the legislation.

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