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Blind citizens already utilizing expanded voting access

Following the temporary expansion implemented Saturday of voting access for the May 5 election, blind voters have already begun utilizing the accessible vote from home option. Two voters — one in the city of Kalamazoo and one in Oshtemo Township — completed applications for absentee ballots and submitted them to their clerks. Within minutes of their requests being processed, Michigan Department of State staff had made their ballots accessible to them.

“I am proud that the collaborative work we did to identify this temporary solution is already being put to good use,” said Benson.

All requests for accessible Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting (UOCAVA) ballots must be submitted by Tuesday May 5, 2020 at 4 pm, along with a declaration that the individual requesting the ballot is blind or otherwise disabled, leaving them unable to complete a traditional paper absentee ballot. Disabled voters may then return the ballots to their local clerk in one of the following ways:

  • By hand-delivering them to the clerk’s office by 8:00 p.m. on May 5,
  • By requesting that they be picked up by their local clerk’s office by 4:00 p.m. on May 5,
  • Or by first-class mail postmarked on or before May 5.

To read the court decision on accessibility and for full instructions on how blind voters can participate, visit Michigan.gov/Elections.

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