News Photo by Steve Schulwitz Alpena Clerk Anna Soik organizes a makeshift voting booth where people can vote absentee. So far, totals from absentee voting and in-person early voting in Alpena County, Alpena, and Montmorency County are below the state’s turnout average. The numbers are expected to climb today when many people will vote on Election Day.

ALPENA — The number of voters who utilized absentee voting and in-person early voting in Alpena and Alpena County is below the state average, the latest data released by the Michigan Department of State shows.

Only 39.5% of voters voted before election day, which is below the statewide 43.9% average.

Montmorency County also fell short of the average and posted a 38.4% turnout.

Presque Isle and Alcona counties matched or exceeded the state’s average voter turnout percentage which combines people who voted absentee and voted early in person.

The final turnout rate, which will add Election Day turnout, will be calculated after today’s election.

Despite falling short of the statewide average, it is still expected there will be lengthy lines at the poles today in all four counties as people cast their vote for who they want to be president.

And despite falling short of the in-person early voting and absentee voting, local clerks said the clerk’s offices have been busy and the polls busy.

All four counties in Northeast Michigan saw a large percentage of the absentee ballots sent to voters returned.

As a whole, the municipalities in Alpena County sent out 5,913, and 5,375 were returned, as of Monday morning. That equates to more than a 90% return rate. A high percentage of voters who received absentee ballots and returned them in the neighboring counties was shown in the state statistics.

In rural areas of the state, it is a tradition to vote on election day, but there are signs more people are choosing to bank their votes early by voting absentee or in-person early voting.

Early voting in Northeast Michigan was slow when it began, but it picked up steam for the presidential election.

Alpena, which partnered with the township to share resources and the costs of early voting, only had 75 people who voted in person during early voting for the August Primary Election, while Alpena Township had 119 voters fill out ballots.

Those totals are similar to the presidential primary election in February, which was the first time early voting was implemented. During the presidential primary election, which included few other political races or ballot proposals, Alpena had 116 early voters, while the township had 117.

In this election cycle, however, the state and all of the counties in Northeast Michigan saw a large increase in the number of people choosing to vote early and in person.

In Alpena County, 3,241 people voted early at the polls. There were 886 voters from Alpena alone who cast ballots early.

The number of early voters in Presque Isle was also impressive, as 2,459 pushed their ballots into a tabulator. Alcona County had 1,400 early voters and Montmorency County had 1,169.

Alpena Clerk Anna Soik said she figured more voters would utilize early voting for the presidential election, but she didn’t expect to see such a big jump in participation.

“We weren’t expecting it all and I think it surprised everyone at the local and state level,” she said. “It just exploded. It was a surprise, but a good surprise.”

Early in-person voting has wrapped up, but people who still have absentee ballots can return them until 8 p.m. tonight.

Polls are open today from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m.

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 or sschulwitz@thealpenanews.com. Follow him on X @ss_alpenanews.com.

ABSENTEE BALLOTS SENT

Michigan — 2,329,387

Alpena County — 5,913

Alpena — 1,990

Presque Isle County — 2,868

Alcona County — 2,312

Montmorency County — 2,214

ABSENTEE BALLOTS RETURNED

Michigan — 1,981,594

Alpena County — 5,375

Alpena — 1,786

Presque Isle County — 2,574

Alcona County — 1,861

Montmorency County — 1,946

IN-PERSON EARLY VOTING

Michigan — 1,214,444

Alpena County — 3,241

Alpena — 883

Presque Isle County — 2,459

Alcona County — 1,400

Montmorency County — 1,169

ABSENTEE/EARLY VOTING TURNOUT

Michigan — 43.9%

Alpena County — 39.5%

Alpena — 36.3%

Presque Isle — 46.2%

Alcona County — 43.9%

Montmorency County — 38.4%