[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6181909,"mediaKeyId","5110900-585111100573d9f4d5cc4637b4e9fabc","parentId",5110900,"title","Michigan clerks, sponsor urge uniform swearing-in date to ensure late ballots are counted","audioSeconds",56,"startMs",341000,"endMs",397000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5110900-585111100573d9f4d5cc4637b4e9fabc&start=341&end=397","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5110900-585111100573d9f4d5cc4637b4e9fabc/thumbnail_341000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6181909/Michigan/Michigan-clerks-sponsor-urge-uniform-swearing-in-date-to-ensure-late-ballots-are-counted","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6181909-1228b3042ae037c9f2aa1f518164579a/orig.mp4?Expires=1771150432&Signature=K-TI3nctOa~WeS1rWSsZgHF7r3cRXylB5XVwmf8UAPBPGzeOPhCA2qM6KG9szxoW4M2dpgoM1lhVTGo73XYSHjvG5ZZeJUbyIftguQrk3S52vIH13SrRo5NGB6UPH4g9jMI5KTzraScyXKkipjNY1bf~X7LxHjKku3kNp9Jr7F4DGrGM3KvdaEUGhnU71Xo1WGxfyhU-OJhtIctos2WCR6snNddBFI7cohVlS674tuEkNlHdW2pTyjbbAZcmy8FzcxoobLM0VDxKmfMh3zOOYYU40o7XaRgPF06Uv91RErEGc941pB0D4e1y4qWKJLADMajsskwqSrBmZYzQI8dRAQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Michigan Legislature","date","2025-07-01T16:56:30.62Z","article","Representative Jamie Hoadley, sponsor of a four‑bill package, told the Michigan House Committee on Election Integrity that the bills aim to ensure local officials are not sworn in before all ballots that were properly postmarked are counted.

Hoadley said the proposals respond to the 2022 constitutional change known as Proposal 2 and its implementing law, Senate Bill 259 (Public Act 25 of 2023), which allow military and overseas ballots postmarked on or before election day to be counted if received within six days after the election.

\"Technical fix ensures all votes are counted before a winning candidate assumes his office position,\" Representative Jamie Hoadley said, describing the bills as \"pretty cut, cut and dry\" and saying they would move the swearing‑in date for most city, township and village officials to no sooner than Dec. 1.

Mary Clark, Delta Township clerk and a representative of the Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks, told the committee her jurisdiction received seven military/overseas ballots after Election Day in a recent cycle that had to be added manually to totals. Clark said current local swearing‑in dates vary widely: some townships take office Nov. 20, East Lansing holds swearing‑in the Monday after the election, and Lansing takes office Jan. 1. She said shifting most local start dates to Dec. 1 would create consistency and avoid situations where officials are sworn in before close contests are finally canvassed and certified.

\"This brings some consistency,\" Clark said. \"...to avoid any confusion or any embarrassing moments where someone's sworn in that actually is in a close election and move ballot tallies change that.\"

Lisa Posthumus Lyons, Kent County clerk, told the panel she supported the package to preserve the canvass process and avoid a situation in which a person sworn into office had not yet been certified following recounts or other post‑election procedures. Lyons said the longer canvass times driven by the statutory six‑day receipt window and other post‑election processes make the timing mismatch possible.

Oakland County Clerk Lisa Brown urged the committee to pass the bills and said she would like immediate effect so the change could apply before November elections with local contests. Tyrone Township Clerk Dolan Behr said the change would also give newly elected local officials extra time for training and to receive official certification mailings.

There was no formal vote on the bills in the hearing; the committee took testimony from the sponsor and multiple local clerks and stakeholders. Earlier in the session Representative Hoadley moved to adopt the minutes from June 24; that motion prevailed by unanimous consent.

Why it matters: Under current practice, local jurisdictions must wait up to six days to include military and overseas ballots that arrive after election day but are postmarked by election day. Because some local charters and ordinances set officials\u0000swearing‑in dates before that window closes, a candidate could be sworn into office before all lawful ballots are canvassed and certified.

What the bills would do: The four bills in the package would move the start dates for most city, township and village officials to Dec. 1 (while allowing jurisdictions with later charter dates, such as Lansing's Jan. 1, to remain). Proponents described the change as a \"technical fix\" intended to align canvass timelines and swearing‑in dates.

Outlook: Supporters from municipal clerks associations and county clerks urged quick action, with some asking for immediate effect to apply the change in the coming November elections. No committee vote on the bills was recorded during this hearing.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Election Integrity - 7/1/2025","oneSentenceSummary","Representative Jamie Hoadley told the House Committee on Election Integrity that a four‑bill package would move most city, township and village swearing‑in dates to Dec. 1 so ballots postmarked on or before election day but received afterward can be counted before officials take office.","taxTitle","2025 House Legislature MI, Michigan","taxId",77683,"location","Michigan","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6181905,"Clerks push back on proposed centralization of logic and accuracy testing; Department of State raises procedural concerns",476,1317000,1793000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5110900-585111100573d9f4d5cc4637b4e9fabc&start=1317&end=1793","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5110900-585111100573d9f4d5cc4637b4e9fabc/thumbnail_1317000.jpg","/articles/6181905/Michigan/Clerks-push-back-on-proposed-centralization-of-logic-and-accuracy-testing-Department-of-State-raises-procedural-concerns","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6181905-c3d5228e561534939a5bf879fefbcd37/orig.mp4?Expires=1771150432&Signature=hzYqyFsRxsXdXgBN8hwNas4k8kyxkaDfPT-Yun6GxI-25ZlK4KvnEKn7QLvFU69Jmkb8T5amrpDiHghV6fZkm8Pxp7jZlWXNB~fvcK4z0HEtIaRHO1umqjGXIXQIPiIqRfbSRR5-~J2eqPLTAlSfSl-32YmITfiXjsPg3LgLOBCSa3xDWQEjOqSHU7OFvwZYK3BDfAjOVErMtBC4xEfk~KttWq2An9ToL5oUk5DtygX7JI08Qu8dyobcuTNv7CoVwTT8CLFs7NeURibs5NYDbi4FzJNGh5ovD3TzZt0xUawAJCmtINA3bmgXPhxS7oiU77KveuXZv2Nt3Hggy8kqmw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","House Bill 4602, introduced by Chair Schmidt, would restrict the secretary of state from prohibiting local election authorities from using lawful sources to create predetermined result charts and test decks for pre‑election logic and accuracy testing.

\"This decentralized approach has served our state well,\" Chair Schmidt said in support of HB 4602, arguing the bill would \"preserve local choice\" and prevent an exclusive arrangement with a single vendor.

Multiple county and municipal clerks testified in favor. Chris Swope, Lansing city clerk, described the logic and accuracy process and said he typically marks and runs the ballots locally so \"it's a very locally run process.\" Swope and others said a centralized, state‑mandated single vendor could reduce transparency, increase cost, and make public explanation of testing harder.

\"...it was much less understandable explainable or transparent, so that concerns me,\" Swope said after piloting an expanded test deck the Bureau of Elections offered.

Kent County Clerk Lisa Posthumus Lyons and Oakland County Clerk Lisa Brown said the public logic and accuracy test is a transparent, public step that helps build voter trust and that local control and election commission oversight are important safeguards. Brown said she and Lyons supporting the bill was \"not a partisan issue\" and expressed concern about sending official ballots to a vendor the county did not contract with.

Representatives from the Michigan Department of State, including Aaron Shore and Deputy Director of Elections Adam Fercasse, told the committee the department had executed a procurement and contract with BallotIQ (through DTMB procurement processes) and that their intention was to provide an optional, no‑cost test deck and an electronic system to streamline ballot proof transmission. Fercasse said the system is intended to be an option for clerks and to automate transmission of ballot proofs to the Bureau of Elections for review.

Fercasse also said the BallotIQ test deck includes additional cross‑contest checks and that the department is still developing the system. He said the department wanted to work with clerks on rollout and did not intend to force a single vendor on clerks.

Department of State witnesses asked that bill language not prevent the Bureau from adopting best practices or rules when appropriate and raised practical concerns about wording that would bar the secretary from permitting centralized processes even when that might be necessary to meet updated standards or procured capabilities.

Clerks described operational impacts of an expanded test deck: Chris Swope said one pilot added roughly six to seven additional ballots per precinct in a local test and that larger jurisdictions could see the public testing take multiple days; Oakland County's central early‑voting site covers the equivalent of about 450 precincts and already takes multiple days to test.

No committee vote on HB 4602 was recorded; the committee took testimony from the sponsor, local clerks, and Department of State representatives.

Why it matters: The bill would enshrine local control over pre‑election testing of tabulators and ballots, and would limit the secretary of state's ability to require a single vendor or centralized repository for predetermined results/test decks. Supporters say that preserves transparency and public access; the Department of State urged precise drafting to avoid unintended barriers to adopting technical best practices.","Supporters of HB 4602 told the House Committee on Election Integrity the bill protects local clerks' authority to run public logic and accuracy tests and prevents a single state‑selected vendor from centrally controlling test decks; the Michigan Department of State said it has a contract with BallotIQ and urged careful drafting to avoid limiting","actionData","errors"]

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Michigan clerks, sponsor urge uniform swearing-in date to ensure late ballots are counted

Clerks push back on proposed centralization of logic and accuracy testing; Department of State raises procedural concerns