DETROIT (WXYZ) — Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan plans to shut down most of the city's government operations for two days so that city employees can assist clerks with the increase in absentee ballots for this election season.
7 Action News confirmed the announcement Tuesday evening.
Duggan made the announcement during an online forum hosted by the Center for American Progress Action Fund.
According to the Secretary of State's Office, nearly 6,000 men and women will work elections in Detroit, hoping to avoid issues reported during the August primary – when absentee ballot counts were off in 72 percent of the precincts.
In Detroit, 21 offices open on Oct. 5, where people can register to vote, receive absentee ballots and return them.
More than 2.3 million absentee ballot requests have been submitted in Michigan as of Monday, Sept. 21, the secretary of state's office said. Benson says her office anticipates 3 million people will end up requesting absentee ballots.
That's nearly one-third of registered voters in the state.
If you plan to mail your ballot in, it's recommended you do so by Oct. 19. A ballot must be postmarked up to Nov. 2 in order to be counted.
In total, Michigan has 7.7 million registered voters.