A study released by the Pew Center on Tuesday revealed that Michigan is one of 16 states that does not allow enough time for U.S. soldiers to submit their absentee ballots before an election. The story was covered by the Detroit News this week: http://tiny.cc/Btduw

The study made recommendations for how Michigan could better assist soldiers and others living abroad to ensure their votes were counted by Election Day. These included improvements such as mailing ballots earlier and allowing election officials to make blank ballots available electronically.

The next day, this editorial ran in the same paper, and it pushes the issue of allowing electronic absentee voting as a way to make sure soldiers, who fight for the freedom of our country, are not deprived of the right to participate in the democratic process: http://tiny.cc/qR17h.

Senate Democrats believe that no one should miss out on voting, and that while we should accommodate the needs of those living overseas, we should also work harder to make sure everyone right here at home can cast their ballots as well. Each year hundreds of voters fail to make it to their polling stations on Election Day due to circumstances beyond their control.

Twenty-eight other states allow No Reason Absentee Voting, and Michigan should be next on the list. Currently, state law requires voters to meet certain criteria before they may vote absentee. This needs to change. Sen. Liz Brater (D-Ann Arbor) introduced SB 12, a bill to allow No Reason Absentee Voting, during the last session and with Sen. Gilda Z. Jacobs (D-Huntington Woods) pushed hard to get it passed. They held several press conferences, including this one at the Capitol: http://tiny.cc/vpmSY. The senators tried to force a vote on the issue in October, and spoke passionately about it on the Senate floor: http://tiny.cc/SEpBA.

This is just one of the many pressing issues that should have been addressed by the Senate Campaign and Elections Committee last year and hopefully will be addressed promptly when the new legislative session begins.

Yesterday a historic opportunity to make this year’s voting process more efficient was lost. The efforts of Sen. Liz Brater (D-Ann Arbor) and Sen. Gilda Z. Jacobs (D-Huntington Woods) and their fellow Senate Democrats to achieve a full vote on no reason absentee voting legislation were shut down by the Senate Republican Majority, who delayed addressing the issue until after the election.

This is a significant election and record turnout is anticipated. The lines will be long. Many of us may get stuck at work, stuck in traffic, or have an unexpected family emergency to deal with. Many of us have families we want to get home to, or errands we need to run before stores close. Some of us want extra time to look over our ballots and research the issues before we cast our final votes. Removing restrictions on absentee voting would have allowed all of us to mail in our ballots and avoid the lines, making the voting process more efficient for voters and polling site volunteers alike.

The House passed their no reason absentee legislation, HB 4048, last week. The Senate version of the bill, SB 12, has been collecting dust in the Campaign & Election Oversight Committee since its introduction in January 2007. Yesterday, Sens. Brater, Jacobs and their colleagues made one last push to act on the public’s behalf and pass these bills. Senate Republican leaders had a chance to move this legislation before the election, and they chose not to. Below are Senators Brater and Jacobs’ no vote explanations on the Republicans’ motion to pass the item for the day.

Michigan citizens should be encouraged to participate in the election process, and their right to vote should not be limited. Unfortunately, many find voting to be more of a hassle than it should be. Balancing a full-time job (or sometimes two jobs), a family, daily errands, and rush-hour traffic are just some of the reasons getting to the voting booth can be difficult. Add the rising cost of gas, or unforeseen circumstances like illness or bad weather, and some people might decide that voting just isn’t a priority.

Voting should be a priority. We all have the right to vote, and every eligible voter over the age of 18 should be exercising that right. Voting is the most effective way to have a say in what happens in Michigan and around the country. This election year stands to draw record turnout, with hundreds of thousands of new people voting. We already anticipate challenges in accommodating large crowds at the polling stations.

This fall we will elect leaders who will serve our state and our nation for several years to come, and everyone should be able to vote and be a part of the decision process regardless of the challenges they face in their daily lives.

To remove barriers to voting, Senator Gilda Jacobs and I are calling on the Senate Campaign and Election Oversight Committee to hold a hearing on and pass Senate Bill 12, a no reason absentee voting plan I’m sponsoring which would allow all eligible voters to vote by absentee ballot. If some citizens can vote absentee, everyone should be able to.

In allowing absentee voting for everyone, we hope to increase voter turnout and decrease election costs, and create a more efficient and effective election process. Twenty-eight other states and Washington, D.C. have similar laws that give their citizens choices, and we want Michigan voters to have those same choices. If we don't allow no reason absentee voting we're putting the citizens of Michigan at a disadvantage in having their votes heard this presidential election year.

Absentee voting gives you more time to look over your ballot, and offers the freedom to vote from home and mail the ballot in and be done with it. That means no more worrying about beating traffic on your lunch hour or waiting in a long line at the polling station after work.

Last Wednesday, I introduced legislation (Senate Joint Resolution N) that would allow 16-year old students to vote in local school board elections. Under this constitutional amendment, students would be unable to vote in school millage or bond elections. In order for it to become law, the measure requires a two-thirds majority of the Michigan Senate and House and voters must approve in the November election. Before you attempt to have me committed to a mental institution, here me out. I have reprinted my speech made on the Senate floor explaining the reasoning behind this legislation.

(Senate Journal, May 7, 2008) My statement is as follows:

“I have a truly radical and wild-eyed idea today that I want to propose. Yesterday was an election day in many areas of the state. Election Day should be the secular equivalent of a high holy day in Michigan. It should be a day when we celebrate democracy by exercising our most cherished right, the right to vote.

Unfortunately, many school board candidates were elected yesterday despite less than 10 percent of the electorate casting ballots. Today, I have introduced a constitutional amendment that would make a radical change to voter eligibility and significantly raise the level of participation in such elections. I propose that we grant 16-year-olds the right to vote in school board elections. We have legislation pending that would allow the Secretary of State to pre-register teens to vote when they get their provisional drivers’ license at age 16. I support this legislation; it will result in more teens registering to vote.

But we can go even further. We should duplicate the success of the graduated driver’s license program, which allows teen to drive earlier at 14 years and 9 months, but with significant restrictions. After a two-year apprenticeship, they are then allowed to drive unrestricted. This training period has resulted in more responsible teen drivers who are involved in fewer accidents.

This constitutional amendment would apply that same principle of apprenticeship to voters. If we just pre-register them and make them wait two years, they will forget that they even registered. Let’s allow them to vote for school board candidates and begin the habit of a lifetime. They will cast their ballots and participate in civic affairs and our democracy will be stronger for it. Students are directly and immediately affected by these elections. They care about having good schools. Who knows more about how our schools are operating than the students themselves? They should have some say in the governance of the system.

It will also be a good tonic for the rest of the electorate. Statistics show that turnout is routinely below 10 percent in these elections. More adults would vote if they knew their kids could outvote them. Some parents would be shamed into voting when they drove their kid to the polls. Others would finally appreciate the value and power of the ballot.

I recently received about 60 letters from Heather Schodowski’s students at Dresden Elementary in Sterling Heights. While some students asked me to pass laws to create new video games or reduce the price of LEGO or even the chewing of gum, two students, Keegan McMillan and Jennifer Amodeo, asked me to allow young people to vote. I think their suggestion has merit, and I propose that 16-year-olds, mostly juniors and seniors in high school, be allowed to vote for school board candidates, but not for millages or bond issues or for any other elections. Nor would my amendment lower the current age required to run for various offices, but it will engage and train a new generation of voters.”