Michiganders have even more election access through a pilot program that allows early voting in many local communities, for at least nine consecutive days before an election.

More than 8.2 million Michigan residents are registered to vote, and one way to avoid the crowds at the ballot box is to show up early. The early-voting pilot program is being rolled out in a few cities or counties for this November.

Melanie Macey, policy counsel at the group Promote the Vote Michigan, said early voting is a process that looks a lot like Election Day.

“You go into an early voting site,” said Macey. “There’s a table where you check in and then, they provide you a ballot. You fill out your ballot and you put it in a tabulator, just like at Election Day. So, we haven’t had that in the past, and that’s what’s been added to the new ways that you can vote.”

Not all communities have local elections this year. However, early voting will be available across the state in time for the federal primaries next year.

Another way to avoid the crowds, of course, is to vote by absentee ballot. People don’t have to cite a reason to vote absentee, if that’s what they prefer.

Macey said early voting will be available for all voters – but it will not be at all the usual voting sites.

“I live in Royal Oak, and we’re going to have a combined early-voting site for all of Royal Oak and Madison Heights,” said Macey. “So, all of Royal Oak and Madison Heights voters will have one location.”

She added that these early voting sites and can be found through your local county clerk’s office. These sites will be able to accommodate more voters than an Election Day polling location can serve.