Presidential Election: November 4, 2008

Polling locations will be open for voting from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Absentee Ballots

Absentee ballots are available by mail and at the City Clerk’s Office located at 1 South Huron Street, Ypsilanti, Michigan by mail up to 2:00 p.m. on Novembrer 1, 2008 and in-person up to 4:00 p.m. on November 3, 2008. Business hours of the City Clerk’s office are Monday – Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

The City Clerk’s office will be open to the public from 8:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 1 for absentee voting purposes.

What to Expect When You Get to the Polls

1.  Voters will enter the polling location and fill out an application to vote and show your photo identification (if you have it, otherwise you will also fill out an affidavit of identity).

2.  Your name will be found and then highlighted in the list of voters.

3.  You will be issued a ballot and offered instruction about how to properly mark the ovals, that there are two sides of the ballot to vote, how to receive assistance if you need it, and more.

4.  You will proceed to a voting booth and mark your ballot using the pen provided to you. If you make a mistake, tell the election workers present and they will spoil the ballot and issue you another one.

5.  When done marking  your ballot, you will proceed to the Poll Book station, where your name and ballot number will be written down (depending on where you vote, this may already have been done). Your ballot stub containing the number will be removed, and you will insert your ballot into the ballot tabulator.

6.  Your Ballot will be accepted by the tabulator. You have voted!

New Voting Regulation: Photo IDs

Effective since November, 2007, every voter in the State of Michigan who votes at the polls must either show picture identification or sign an affidavit.

A current driver’s license or state ID card are sufficient, as are a U.S. passport, military photo ID, a student ID card from high school or accredited college or university, or a tribal photo ID.

If you are registered to vote but do not have identification, there will be affidavits at every polling location available to sign. No identification is required for those casting absentee ballots.

Permanent Absentee Voter List

A recent court ruling has required Clerks in every jurisdiction in the State to cease sending absentee ballot applications automatically before each election to voters 60 years of age or older if the voter has not specifically asked to be on a “permanent absentee voter” list.

Voters who wish to have an absentee ballot application mailed to them automatically must complete this form and submit it to the City Clerk's office. Voters may also call the City Clerk's office at (734) 483-1100 or email City Clerk McMullan (fmcmullan@cityofypsilanti.com) or Deputy City Clerk Golembiewski (egolembiewski@cityofypsilanti.com) to be placed on this list.

The permanent absentee voter list is open to any registered voter regardless of age.

If you would like to sign up to be placed on this list, are unsure if you are already on it, or wish to find out more information, please contact the City Clerk’s office by calling (734) 483-1100, writing to the Ypsilanti City Clerk’s Office, One South Huron Street, Ypsilanti, MI 48197, or sending an email to Deputy City Clerk Golembiewski at egolembiewski@cityofypsilanti.com.