Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson announced in May all Michigan voters have the option to vote by absentee ballot. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the volume of mail-in voting is likely higher than ever before.
Edward Golembiewski, Washtenaw County Director of Elections, told The Daily in an email 101,807 absentee ballots were sent county-wide and 34,519 have been issued for the City of Ann Arbor.
According to Golembiewski, absentee ballots are only tabulated on Election Day, and the process of counting absentee ballots are more laborious than normal ballots to “ensure the integrity of the ballot” and protect the secrecy of the votes.
“The process begins with the city or township Clerk receiving the signed, sealed outer envelope containing the ballot,” Golembiewski wrote. “The Clerk verifies voter’s signature on the envelope matches the registration record. On Election Day the ballot is delivered to a bi-partisan board of Election Inspectors (poll workers) who ensure the voter’s name and ballot number appear on the Absent Voter List, carefully open the envelope to preserve the secrecy of the voted ballot inside, ensure that the unique ballot number issued to the voter matches the ballot stub, remove the stub, randomize the ballot order before tabulation, remove the secrecy sleeve from the ballot, and scan the ballot using voting equipment.”
As of 3:33 a.m. on Aug. 5, all 150 presincts have been fully counted. Candidates with their names italicized are the Daily’s predicted winners.
District 12 Congressional Representative (D)
Debbie Dingell: 77.11%
Solomon Rajput: 22.82%
District 53 State Legislative Representative (D)
Sam Larson: 8.84%
Yousef Rabhi: 91.09%
Washtenaw County Prosecutor (D)
Hugo J. Mack: 6.66%
Eli Savit: 50.44%
Arianne Slay: 42.83%
Washtenaw County Sheriff (D)
Jerry L. Clayton: 75.59%
Ken Magee: 24.17%
Ann Arbor Council Ward 1 (D)
Anne Bannister: 32.05%
Lisa Disch: 67.75%
Ann Arbor Council Ward 2 (D)
Jane Lumm: 40.07%
Linh Song: 59.88%
Ann Arbor Council Ward 3 (D)
Tony Brown: 31.34%
Travis A. Radina: 51.28%
Evan Redmond: 17.20%
Ann Arbor Council Ward 4 (D)
Jack Eaton: 29.10%
Jen Eyer: 60.65%
Mozhgan Savabieasfahani: 10.17%
Ann Arbor Council Ward 5 (D)
Erica Briggs: 66.15%
Dan Michniewicz: 13.99%
David A. Silkworth: 19.74%
Washtenaw County Commissioner 3 (R)
Jacob Ehrman: 45.19%
Ken Siler: 54.61%
Washtenaw County Commissioner 4 (D)
Darcy Berwick: 21.70%
Daryl Campbell: 21.49%
Paul J. Jakabcsin: 3.13%
Caroline L. Sanders: 53.57%
Washtenaw County Commissioner 5 (D)
Justin D. Hodge: 33.43%
Denise Kirchoff: 15.94%
Karen Lovejoy Roe: 30.11%
Michael White: 19.93%