GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — When you're handed a ballot on August sixth, or maybe an absentee ballot you already have, there's certain things to keep in mind to avoid "spoiling" it.
It's not uncommon to mess up and we met with Grand Rapids City Clerk, Joel Hondorp, to learn what to look for.
So far, a million and a half voters from across the state have requested an absentee ballot. Many more will vote during early voting and on election day.
"There's three different ways that voters can choose to vote or a hybrid of the methods actually now," explained Hondorp.
It's crunch time for Hondorp as early voting starts Saturday.
He says the options are absentee, early voting from July 27 through August 4, and going on election day.
The hybrid method he mentioned is turning in your absentee ballot yourself at a polling place.
"You can take some time at the kitchen table, talk about the ballot, do some research online on the candidates, but you want to see that ballot go through the tabulator," Hondorp shared.
How we vote in Michigan hasn't changed much in the last twenty years.
You fill out a paper ballot and put it into a machine.
Hondorp said, "The tabulators do what they're supposed to do, they count ovals."
It's usually human error we have to worry about, especially during the primary when a common mistake is not "staying in your lane," as Hondorp described it.
"You can vote Democratic and vote non-partisan; You can vote Republican and non-partisan; You just can't switch back-and-forth within those two Republican or Democratic columns."
You'll see three columns on your ballot: republican, democrat, and non-partisan. If you vote for one democratic candidate, you cannot vote for a republican anywhere else on the ballot and vise versa.
If you do, no partisan race will be counted. The non-partisan races would still be counted.
If you make a mistake on either an absentee ballot or in-person voting, you can "spoil" the ballot and get new one.
"I just want voters to make sure that they know there's more things on the ballot than what they think there is," Hondorp added. "We see shell shock on voters faces, especially when we get to November."
Hondorp suggests viewing a sample ballot ahead of time. You can do that by entering in your information on a state website here.
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