FORD RIVER TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WZMQ) – Michigan’s early voting period ended on Sunday. Today, local clerks are preparing for the August 6 primary election.
About halfway through the early voting period, Delta County officials and poll workers reported a slow start. According to Ford River Township Clerk Debbie Brown, it was more of the same for the following days.
“As usual, our County Clerk did a fabulous job with it,” Brown said. “All of the townships sent workers, but it was very slow. We’re hoping that in the November election, it’s more successful.”
Absentee voter numbers were much higher, although the amount of ballots turned in has not quite met expectations.
“For this election, we sent out 394 absentee ballots, and so far we’ve received back 235, so there’s still a lot that aren’t in,” said Brown. “However, due to Proposal 2 in ’22, voters can bring their absentee ballot in and put it in the tabulator themselves. I’m hoping that more of them show up tomorrow.”
Brown says the May recall election was a similar story. Ford River Township is under Delta County District #3, where voters elected Myra Croasdell to unseat then-commissioner Bob Barron.
“I think the recall committees did a really good job publicizing it last time, but I don’t know why the turnout was so low,” said Brown. “It seemed like every time you turned around, you’d read something on the recall.”
Barron is looking to reclaim his seat from Croasdell, a no-party candidate, in November, but he first must face opponent Christine Williams in the Republican primary on Tuesday.
“The race for the county commissioners is really important for voters because they’re narrowing down the candidates for that election in November,” Brown explained. “We’re hoping that more voters turn out this time.”
Despite the quiet lead-up to August 6, Brown and her staff have been hard at work—even over the weekend—preparing for Election Day. Brown is optimistic that Ford River Township will see more voters in person on Tuesday than it did in May.
“Everything’s set up and ready to go,” she said. “Tabulators are getting used today for the absentee voting. I have my crew here ready to go. It’s really important that everybody vote and get their voice heard.”
WZMQ 19 will have live election coverage throughout the U.P. on Tuesday. Stay tuned over the air and at wzmq19.com for results as they come in.
