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Early voting in Manistee will begin on Saturday in advance of the Aug. 4 primary election.
The Farr Center in Onekama is the only early voting location in the county.
Manistee County Clerk Shelli Johnson said, "It just makes sense to have a centrally located site within Manistee County where we can draw from one pool of election inspectors."
"We have clerks that put in 20 days straight, eight-plus hour days during election season without a break. It’s exhausting to say the least," Johnson said. "Consolidating to one site will save taxpayer money between the cost of each municipality’s expenses and non-reimbursable payroll. The reimbursement rate on wages is not a guarantee by the state. The 2026 elections are reimbursable, thankfully. If we can save taxpayer money and continue to maintain election integrity, that is what we are going to do."
She said early voting in 2024 included three locations: the city of Manistee, Manistee Township Hall and the Maple Grove Township Community Center.
"Each of the host sites was responsible for hiring and scheduling election inspectors for the nine consecutive days prior to the upcoming election day, maintaining the additional election equipment, testing of the ballots for each of the precincts that were assigned to their location — per the early voting agreement — payroll, and all necessary documentation, reporting, and (oversight) of the early voting site," Johnson said.
According to the state of Michigan, Manistee County has 21,951 registered voters. Johnson said early voting turnout in 2024 was 254 voters in February, 197 in August and 3,169 in November, falling short of 25% participation across the county’s three sites.
2026 early voting information
The Farr Center is located at 5283 Main St. in Onekama.
Early voting begins at 8:30 a.m. on July 25 and will continue through Aug. 2.
The Farr Center will be open for early voting 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. July 25-Aug. 2.
According to the Michigan Department of State website, early voting takes place for a minimum of nine days, ending on the Sunday before an election.
Early voting allows a voter to cast a ballot before Election Day; a constitutional amendment approved in November 2022 gives voters the right to vote early before statewide and federal elections.
Any registered voter in the state can vote early in person.
Both early voting and absentee voting allow voters to cast a ballot before Election Day, but early voting is completed at a polling location, whereas absentee voters receive a ballot by mail, online or in person.
