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After what seems like endless campaigning -- and a barrage of television ads and mailers, often downright nasty in the attacks aimed at the opposing candidate -- the 2026 midterm elections mercifully have finally arrived.
Polls in Michigan will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday.
Both states will select new governors, as Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer is out due to term limits.
Michigan will have a new U.S. senator and the Upper Peninsula a new 38th District state senator, with Ed McBroom of Waucedah Township also term-limited.
There’s Congressional seats on the ballot, in a year when control of the U.S. House will be up for grabs. Even the U.S. Senate majority is now thought to be in play.
Other Michigan races of note include all 110 state House seats, two statewide ballot proposals and candidates for attorney general, Secretary of State and state Supreme Court.
So while the level of political rancor in some of the races this year might have been off-putting, this is not an election to sit out. Too much hangs in the balance.
Bridge Michigan, a nonprofit and nonpartisan news organization, has put together a complete voters guide for the state at bridgemi.com. It offers an easy way to familiarize yourself with what’s on the ballot. Michigan Advance at https://michiganadvance.com/ has a voter guide as well.
If still planning to vote with a mailed absentee ballot, sending it back through the mail is not recommended at this point. Even the U.S. Postal Service stated in a news release that ballots might not make it by Tuesday unless mailed at least a week in advance. Instead, it should be hand delivered in its signed and sealed envelope to the local clerk’s office or taken to a secure ballot drop box. Clerks must receive absentee ballots no later than 8 p.m. on Election Day to be counted.
Voters can go to mi.gov/vote to check their voter registration, track their mail ballot and find drop boxes.
If not voting with a mail ballot and you can’t make it to the polls Tuesday, in-person early voting sites will be open today and Sunday.
In an election of this magnitude, your voice and viewpoint matter -- but only if you vote.