Not everyone has early-voted, though things may seem that way.
For those who have opted to wait until Nov. 3, here’s what you should know:
- The Michigan Banner’s main election preview reports may be found in our archives for Oct. 1 and Oct. 16, and we will give you a brief summary within this article. Another good source is vote411.org, the League of Women Voters’ long-time guide.
- Your voting precinct will include social distance guideposts, and election workers will be wearing covid-protection masks and shields. You are encouraged to do the same, although by law you legally are allowed to act as a selfish jerk and not wear a mask. Your right to vote is considered important and sacrosanct even to this degree.
- We have no idea whether assertive and antagonistic “poll watchers” may be present, but steps will be taken to ensure your safety.
- Our local clerks say they do not anticipate excessive delays in counting absentee ballots, nothing like the weeks and months that President Trump has predicted.
- If you arrive with a sample ballot or your choices simply written on a piece of paper, this will limit your time in the booth and your exposure to the elements, and also will help to shorten the waiting lines that may form in your precinct.
- Concentrate on filling in your ovals of choice with full coatings of ink, and be sure to limit yourself to the maximum number of candidates in each category.
- If you choose to vote straight ticket Democratic or straight ticket Republican, you still should fill in the ballot’s nonpartisan sections.
Your first choice is for president, of course, but the next one is for U.S. Senate. Dem incumbent Gary Peters is neck-and-neck with young GOP’er John James, and this result could decide whether Dems regain a majority in the upper chamber.
For Congress, Dan Kildee is a strong favorite over GOP challenger Tim Kelly, whose range may be limited to his home base in Saginaw Township.
For state rep, Amos O’Neal seems a shoo-in for the city-based 95th. The tighter race will occur in the suburban and outcounty 94th, with Demond Tibbs challenging GOP first-term incumbent Rodney Wakeman.
The Michigan Supreme Court is just as far right-wing as the new U.S. Supreme Court. The ballot officially is nonpartisan, but the political parties still are heavily involved. Voters are limited to two choices. Dems endorse incumbent Bridget Mary McCormack and Elizabeth Welch, while Repubs back Meg Kelly and Brock Swarzle.
For Saginaw City Council, 11 hopefuls are seeking five open seats. This marks an uptick, considering that two years ago, there almost were not enough candidates to fill the local governing body.
Finally, the three tax proposals at the close of the Saginaw ballot’s flip side may be easily missed and skipped. Prop 20-1 is for an 0.48-mill county health tax mostly put forward on account of Covid-19 concerns, Prop 20-2 is 7 mills for a consolidated city high school, and the third is for an 0.5-mill Delta College renewal.