November 8th is less than one week away and the ads are everywhere. The 2022 Michigan Ballot has the annual positions to vote for like the U.S House of Representatives, MI House of Representatives, Governor, and many other local offices, but there are also three proposals on the ballot that are up for a vote.  

If passed Proposal 1 will change the rules for term limits and require elected officials to file annual financial disclosure reports on their income, assets, liabilities, gifts from lobbyists, positions held in certain organizations, and agreements on future employment. Michigan already has term limits for the state house and senate, but this proposal will change it from three 2-year terms for the house and two 4-year terms for the senate to being able to serve 12 years total on either side of the legislature. 

Proposal 2 attempts to add many policies to the Michigan Constitution about the way voting is conducted. If passed the following policies will be added to the Michigan Constitution. 

• creating a nine-day early voting period; 
• allowing for a photo identification or signed affidavit to vote;
• requiring that military and overseas ballots postmarked by election day are counted;
• providing voters with a right to request an absentee ballot;
• requiring the state to fund prepaid stamps and a tracking system for absentee ballots
• requiring the state to fund a number of absentee ballot dropboxes;
• providing that local governments can accept charitable and in-kind donations to assist with running elections as long as donations are disclosed and aren’t from foreign entities; and
• providing that election officials are responsible for election audits, requiring election audits to be conducted in public, and requiring election results to be certified based on votes cast.

Proposal 2 would also add constitutional language saying that harassing, threatening, or intimidating conduct and laws, regulations, and practices that interfere with a person’s right to vote are prohibited. 

Proposal 3 is related to the issue of abortion. Proposal 3 states,  

“Every individual has a fundamental right to reproductive freedom, which entails the right to make and effectuate decisions about all matters related to pregnancy, including but not limited to parental care, childbirth, postpartum care, contraception, sterilization, abortion care, miscarriage management, and infertility care. 

An individual’s right to reproductive freedom shall not be denied, burdened, nor infringed upon unless justified by a compelling state interest achieved by the least restrictive means. 

Notwithstanding the above, the state may regulate the provision of abortion care after fetal viability, provided that in no circumstance shall the state prohibit an abortion that, in the professional judgment of an attending health care professional, is medically indicated to protect the life or physical or mental health of the pregnant individual.” 

 Proposal 3 is the most controversial proposal on the ballot with $57 million in spending for and against the Proposal which is the most spending for any race on the Michigan 2022 ballot.  

This year is a midterm, so voter turnout is traditionally low but 2022 is shaping up to have a much higher turnout than any previous gubernatorial race.  

https://www.michigan.gov/sos/elections/upcoming-election-information/voters/candidatesproposals