LANSING, Mich. — The City of Lansing Clerk’s Office was awarded a grant for $443,742 to help administer the upcoming November 3rd Election during the coronavirus pandemic. The grant funds will help provide an opportunity to prepare and operate a safe, secure and accurate election and encourage increase participation from Lansing City citizens. The funding comes from the Center for Tech and Civic Life, a nonprofit voting advocacy group.
A FEW WAYS THE GRANT FUNDS WILL BE DISTRIBUTED:
- Absentee ballot application being mailed on Sept. 5 to every remaining Lansing City voters (over 60,000) who has not request a ballot to be mailed to them
- Purchase and installation of 12 new safe and secure drop-boxes located at all fire stations (6), community centers (4), the CATA CTC station, and the City Cemetery office (1) by September 24
- Hazard pay lump sum bonus for the 500 election precinct and absentee counting board workers of an $100 for working all day and $50 for working a shorter shift. More workers are needed and can sign up via a link at lansingmi.gov/clerk
- Expanded in-person early voting opportunities.
- Extra staff for extended hours at the South Washington Election Unit at 2500 S. Washington Ave. starting in October
- A third satellite location at the Alfreda Schmidt Southside Community Center from October 19 – October 30.
- Expanding voter education and outreach efforts.
- 20 billboard messages across the City and media buys encouraging and informing voters across all mediums.
- High-speed tabulators for AV ballots. o With additional funding support also from the Michigan Bureau of Elections, Absentee Ballots will be counted 4x faster than in the August Primary Election. It’s expected 45,000 AV ballots will be processed. “This is great news for Lansing City voters. We can use this money to dramatically expand our operation to meet the demand of this unprecedented election, build an infrastructure for future growth of people taking advantage of the benefits of voting at home and expand our voter education efforts,” said Lansing City Clerk Chris Swope. “Voters can count on me to make sure their vote is safe, secure, and counted this upcoming election - even in the midst of a pandemic.”
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