Nik Rajkovic / news@whmi.com

With one week before polls open on Election Day, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson's office reported almost 2 million Michigan voters have already cast their ballot in the General Election - nearly a quarter of the state’s active registered voters.

Over 389,000 voted at an in-person early voting site, and more than 1.6 million voters have voted by mail or ballot drop box.

As of Tuesday morning, a total of 389,644 voters had cast a ballot at an early voting site, which includes more than 250,000 citizens during the first two days of statewide early voting. The highest turnout day so far was Saturday, Oct. 26, with 145,176 ballots cast. 2024 is the first election year with a constitutionally required minimum of nine days of early in-person voting under Proposal 2, passed by Michigan’s voters in 2022.

A total of 2,360,407 voters have requested an absentee ballot for the General Election and 1,602,831 of them have voted and returned their absentee ballot by mail or to their ballot drop box, clerk’s office or early voting site. A breakdown of absentee ballot requests and returns by jurisdiction is available online.

Voters who have received but not yet returned their absentee ballot should return it to an official ballot drop box in their jurisdiction or hand deliver it to their local clerk’s office. Voters should not mail ballots this close to Election Day.

With the exception of military and overseas absentee voters, all absentee ballots must be received by clerk’s offices or drop boxes by 8 p.m. on Election Day or they will not be counted. For ballot drop box and clerk’s office locations go to Michigan.gov/Vote.

Eligible Michigan residents can still register to vote in person at their city or township clerk’s office with proof of residency until 8 p.m. on Election Day for this election.