The day has come. Tuesday, Nov. 5 is Election Day in the U.S., and eyes are on Michigan as a swing state in the presidential race. Meanwhile, Democrats are fighting to maintain a razor-thin majority in the state House, other key roles of representation locally and in D.C. are in play, and races down the ballot will decide leadership in the realms of education and justice.

Here are the latest updates from Michigan on Election Day 2024:

GOTV texts from Michigan politicians misdirect voters

A text from state Rep. Kathy Schmaltz, R-Jackson, sent Tuesday incorrectly said that polling locations would “open tomorrow”, prompting a complaint filed with the Secretary of State’s office, according to a press release from the Michigan Legislative Black Caucus.

Caucus chair state Sen. Erika Geiss, D-Taylor, blasted the text as a “blatant attempt at disinformation and voter suppression” in a statement.

A text from Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II also was received 24 minutes after 8 p.m., when polls closed. It encouraged voters to head to their polling locations and “VOTE TODAY," according to a copy of the message sent to a Free Press reporter.

A consultant for Schmatlz’ campaign and a spokesperson with the governor’s office did not immediately respond to a Free Press request to comment.

-Clara Hendrickson

Macomb clerk trying to speed up vote counting

Macomb County Clerk Anthony Forlini said he was heading to New Baltimore with a sheriff's deputy to pick up memory sticks with voting data, then would head to Chesterfield Township to do the same in an effort to get election results to the county − and thus online to the public − faster.

The county participates in a program where a sheriff's deputy and county clerk's employee, in this case Forlini himself, go to municipalities and pick up the sticks. It's a secure process, where they transport them to the county's election department in Mount Clemens.

He said three communities used the program in Tuesday's election.

Forlini previously told the Free Press he worked with the sheriff in the August primary as well.

About 45 minutes before most polls in Michigan closed at 8 p.m., Forlini told the Free Press: "It's been a very busy day at the polls, and I think voter turnout is going to be fantastic." He reported no issues at the polls.

About 9:15 p.m., Forlini said long lines continued and people in line in Harrison Township were voting past 8 p.m.

-Christina Hall

Detroit turnout to reach 51%, results by midnight

Detroit is on pace to reach 51 percent voter turnout with all ballots to be counted by around midnight, a top city election official said at the Huntington Place absentee counting site after polls closed Tuesday at 8 p.m.

More than 82,000 city voters cast ballots in person on Election Day as of 5 p.m. That comes after 92,000 voted absentee and 43,000 voted early, said Daniel Baxter, chief operations officer of the Detroit elections department.

More:Find all 2024 Michigan election results here

Workers have been counting absentee ballots since Oct. 28 in a more streamlined process than that of 2020, when Huntington Place, then the TCF center, descended into chaos amid allegations of impropriety.

No more than 8,000 additional absentee ballots were expected to be delivered for counting Tuesday. Most were submitted via drop box.

Baxter’s turnout projection is at the low end of the range provided by Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey at a briefing last week, when she expected up to 55 percent of eligible voters to cast ballots. Voter turnout in the city reached 51 percent in 2012 and 2020, and dipped to 49 percent in 2016, when Hillary Clinton lost the state by fewer than 11,000 votes. At current estimates the overall number of votes could match the roughly 257,000 people who voted in the last presidential election in 2020.

Asked how this election differs from 2020, Baxter said, “There’s no chaos going on right now, no pandemonium. Nobody is banging on windows, nobody is shouting stop the count.”

“Do you hear that?” he said. “I think I hear people singing Kumbaya.”

-Violet Ikonomova

No truth to Trump post about Detroit law enforcement

Detroit police are prepared for the General Election but there is no evidence to support a false claim from former President Donald Trump about law enforcement in the majority Democratic city.

“A lot of talk about massive CHEATING in Philadelphia,” Trump posted on his social media company Truth Social around 6:30pm. “Philadelphia and Detroit! Heavy Law Enforcement is there,” he added.

More:Find all 2024 Michigan election results here

Detroit police did not specifically respond to Trump's asserting, instead offering a statement Tuesday evening as polls closed about the security of the election.

“As we have done in prior elections, the DPD has assigned personnel to locations throughout the city to ensure public safety during this election cycle for all voters. The amount of staffing deployed for this event is no different than in prior elections,” Detroit police said in a statement forwarded to the Free Press by a spokesperson in the mayor’s office.

The department says it's in close communication with the city clerk “and will provide any needed assistance in ensuring election integrity.”

In 2020, Trump encouraged supporters to protest outside the city’s absentee ballot counting center as part of his false claim widespread election fraud caused his loss in Michigan.

As protesters inside the then-TCF Center complained of what they believed to be voting fraud, police began to add road barricades, closing Washington Boulevard nearby the convention center and separating the group from a smaller band of counter protesters who also showed up.

Clerks are processing ballots quicker this year; they credit new election laws established as a result of an amendment to the state constitution in 2022, allowing early voting and enabling voters to automatically receive absentee ballots for all future elections.

This year, election officials were able to pre-process absentee ballots eight days before Election Day. Some clerks chose not to.

-Sam Robinson

Voter turns Green in protest

Chelsea Thacker, 34, of Grosse Pointe Woods, said she was so disappointed with human rights abuses in the Middle East that she refused to vote for either Democrat Kamala Harris or Republican Donald Trump for president.

“Jill Stein, because she’s the only candidate against genocide committed by U.S.-backed Israel in Gaza and Lebanon,” said Thacker after voting Tuesday at Grosse Pointe Woods Community Center on Mack Plaza.

Thacker added she’ll never again vote for a Democrat or Republican presidential candidate until they change their positions on what she called the most pressing human rights issues.

-Matthew Dolan

First-time Detroit voter: Not enough women in charge

At the East English Village Preparatory Academy, an eastside Detroit polling station, the Free Press stopped seven voters late Tuesday as they left the building separately and at different times. All said they had voted for Vice President Kamala Harris for president.

"I wasn't hyped about it, but I did it - the other option wasn't an option" said 34-year-old Jeff Peake, a union carpenter who referred to Trump as "the greater of two evils."

More:Find all 2024 Michigan election results here

For the King sisters − three college-aged voters who showed up together to vote − it was Harris's commitment to protect women's rights that mattered most to them. They also loved the idea of a woman leading in the White House.

"You don't see enough women in charge," said 18-year-old Periece King, a first-time voter and nursing student who voted alongside her two sisters:-21-year-old Peria King, who is studying to be a stenographer, and 22-year-old Pierrah King, who works as an Amazon driver.

When asked if anyone in their family was voting for Trump, they laughed and said, "maybe an uncle."

-Tresa Baldas

More than 3.4 million absentee, early votes cast in Michigan, state officials say

As of 6 p.m., just over 3.4 million absentee ballots and early votes — 46.6% of the state's active registered voters — were cast in Michigan, according to state officials.

Officials said 93% of absentee ballots sent statewide had been returned.

The number of Michiganders who had registered to vote as of 6 p.m. Tuesday was up to 16,573. In 2020, more than 28,000 voters registered on Election Day.

-Kristi Tanner

5:30 p.m.: Reproductive rights, ending 'extremist ideology' motivate Detroit voter

Kelly Flores-Mendoza, 23, of Detroit, who voted after work, said what drew her to the polls were reproductive rights, strengthening — and not defunding — education, supporting who might be the first female president, and to put an end to Trump's anti-immigrant rhetoric.

Flores-Mendoza, whose parents are Mexican immigrants, she said she feels the fear in her community if Trump wins another term. She feels it herself.

"His recent insane rhetoric and his extremist ideology — it ignites violence," she said.

This election has been stressful for her, considering what's at stake and how close the race is. She was excited to vote for Harris. But, she was bummed that her polling site, the Roberto Clemente Learning Academy in southwest Detroit, ran out of the werewolf "I voted" stickers.

-Andrea Sahouri

Video: Voters in Oakland County share who they voted for in presidential election

Hundreds of DJs perform at polling sites across state

As voters lined up early Tuesday to cast their ballots at the Northwest Activities Center in Detroit, a DJ kicked things off outside to energize the crowd, playing "Happy," by Pharrell Williams.

“We're trying to bring excitement to voters, to get them out to vote,” said Jacqueline Kapilango, who goes by DJ Asset, a volunteer with the group DJ at the Polls.

Jamiel Martin, the Michigan project manager for DJs at the Polls, said it's an effort in 11 states.

"Our goal is to inspire folks through the DJ's performance, to excite people to come out to vote," Martin said. He said some polling locations may have lines, so the DJs are out there to "keep the vibe upbeat."

More:DJs energize Election Day crowds across Michigan as voters line up to cast ballots

-Nushrat Rahman, Susan Tompor, Jalen Williams and Gina Kaufman

Two women diverge at the ballot box in Birmingham

In the leafy environs of Birmingham outside the First Presbyterian Church polling place on West Maple Road, one voter said explained her vote.

Twenty-year-old Nicole Merchant, an advertising and theater major at Michigan State University, said she was inspired to fill in Vice President Kamala Harris because of the Democrat’s support for women’s rights, abortion freedom and key issues important to the gay, lesbian, bisexual and trans communities.

“This feels like a major turning point for our country and it’s very important that I’m here,” Merchant said.

-Matthew Dolan

5 p.m.: Detroit Police: Threat made against polling site not credible

The threat made on Election Day eve to shoot up a polling location on Detroit's northwest side was not credible, Detroit police confirmed to the Free Press on Tuesday.

Police didn’t say to whom the call was made but had said they were giving special attention to the polling location, which is in the 21600 block of West Seven Mile Road. On Monday, Detroit police said the department received a 911 call from an individual "claiming to have heard a threat to a polling location via a Facebook post," according to a police spokesperson.

Detroit police said around 4:30 p.m. Tuesday that polling locations in Detroit are "looking great," with no reported incidents of threats or crimes at the sites.

-Andrea Sahouri

4:30 p.m.: Returning citizen appreciates power of the vote

The 2024 election was the first time Josh Puckett was able to vote in 29 years.

Puckett, 47, of Redford was released from prison in July and is already prominent in metro Detroit's criminal justice reform circles. This year, fighting for reforms also meant voting in those who support changing our flawed criminal justice system, he said.

When the Free Press spoke to him around 2:30 p.m. at the Clippert Multicultural Magnet Honors Academy polling location in southwest Detroit, he was in the neighborhood where he grew up, volunteering as a nonpartisan poll observer.

“Seeing it through to the end means making sure everyone's vote matters and no one gets turned away," he said. "I’m really proud of Southwest Detroit. This is well organized."

Puckett estimated he's seen at least 100 first-time voters at Clippert, and everything had gone smoothly.

(In fact, Detroit police said around 4:30 p.m. that polling locations in Detroit were "looking great" with no reported incidents of threats or crimes at the sites.)

And although he wouldn't say who he voted for at the top of the ticket, voting down-ballot was what brought him to the polls — including the races for Michigan Supreme Court and local judges.

He did say, however, his support for Palestine made the decision between Trump and Harris difficult. Puckett said without hesitation that he believes Harris will swing Michigan and win the election.

But Dakota Shananaquet, 49, of Redford who volunteered as a poll observer at Clippert with Puckett, hesitated before saying, "Harris."

Shananaquet, who is Native American, said indigenous issues are key for her. She voted for Harris and explained that under the Biden-Harris administration, a lot of good was done for her community, including Biden's appointment of a Native American secretary of the interior, Deb Haaland.But as an indigenous woman, voting for Harris wasn't exactly easy, either, given the current administration's support for Israel's assault on Gaza that she described as a genocide. "We identify it, because we as Native American people went through the same thing," Shananaquet said.

-Andrea Sahouri

3:15 p.m.: Abortion a top issue for Royal Oak voter

Elliot Callan, 19, of Royal Oak, said he wasn’t planning to vote until he was propelled by one issue: abortion.

Callan, a hospital kitchen worker, began to learn more about the presidential candidates and their views on ending pregnancies. He said he felt inspired to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris because of her strong support for a woman’s right to choose.

“I’m all about less government in our lives,” Callan said, adding that the last thing a pregnant woman trying to make a difficult choice about an abortion should have to worry about is government intervention.

-Matthew Dolan

State: 92% of absentee ballots sent have been returned

In an update just after 3 p.m., election officials reported that 58,466 absentee ballots had been returned since polls opened this morning and that 92% of absentee ballots sent — 2,164,803 — have been returned statewide.

The number of people who registered and voted on Election Day increased to 9,612.

-Kristi Tanner

Video: Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson dances with crowd outside of Pasteur Elementary in Detroit

2:25 p.m.: Two Ferndale voters express different reasons for choosing candidates

Two twentysomethings emerged separately from their Ferndale voting booths Tuesday afternoon with starkly different reasons for choosing two opposing presidential candidates.

Outside Ferndale Free Methodist Church on Woodward Heights, Matthew Flint, 26, who works for Costco, cast his ballot because he was driven to oppose the Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump.

“He lacks character,” Flint said in an interview. “I picked her (Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris) because he’s so bad.”

Just a few minutes later, Connor Elkins, also 26 from Ferndale, who works as a union drywall installer, described filling out his ballot for Trump, whom he said would solve the problem of illegal immigration. Elkins previously spent more than four years in the Marines, and said he believes the country’s armed forces were stronger under Trump’s leadership than the Biden administration, including Harris.

“There is now a bold line between them,” he added.

-Matthew Dolan

Flat Rock voter doesn't want results to be rushed

Siblings James, 28, and Samantha Smith, 24, walked into the Flat Rock Community Center confident in their decisions in casting their votes. The two shared the sentiment that the working class and immigration and the border were their biggest concerns headed into the election, and planned on voting straight Republican.

“I voted for Trump last time. The reason I voted for him is I wanted him to shake up Washington. I think there was a lot of crooked politics in there, to be honest," said James, a former Marine. “And Trump, being a businessman, I think he knows how to run a country. He does pretty good for himself now.”

James said he doesn’t want the results to be rushed.

“I think timeframe is not really an issue. I think they should really take their time, because I'm one of the people that strongly believe that the last election was rigged and that there was false ballots,” he said.

-Eric Guzmán

1 Northville precinct relocates because of gas leak

A voting precinct in Northville, which is in both Wayne and Oakland counties, relocated on Election Day due to a gas leak.

Precinct 1, which is at the community center on Main Street, suspended voting operations Tuesday, the city announced in a Facebook post about noon.

Precinct 1 voters now need to go to Hillside Middle School, the city stated in another post.

That location is the site of Precinct 2 and is at 775 N. Center Street in the city.

Consumers Energy is on scene of the gas leak, the city stated.

-Darcie Moran

Backup tabulators deployed in Oakland County

Oakland County saw brief issues with vote tabulators on Election Day, officials confirmed.

Some precincts in a handful of communities such as Rochester Hills and Pontiac had problems earlier this morning with their tabulators, said Oakland County Clerk Lisa Brown.

“That does not stop voting,” she said, noting that backup tabulators have since been deployed.

-Kristi Tanner

11:38 a.m.: Same-day voter registration surpasses August primary

In an update just after 11:30 a.m. on Election Day, election officials revealed same-day voter registration had hit 3,704.

In the August primary, same-day registrations were reported as 3,600, said Angela Benander, chief communications officer for the Michigan Department of State.

Turnout on Election Day had also crept up to about 46.1% of active, registered voters in Michigan, she announced. That includes 25,000 absentee ballots returned so far on Tuesday.

She said Michigan, at the time, had about 7,300 military overseas ballots that were still due back. Military overseas ballots must be postmarked on or before Election Day and are accepted within six days after the election to be counted.

Both Flint and Detroit were reportedly moving swiftly in counting absentee ballots.

-Darcie Moran

11:03 a.m.: Concerns of treason out of Grand Rapids

Rodney Bragg, 58, of Grand Rapids, said he cast a straight party ticket for Democrats on Tuesday, as is the tradition for him and his family.

Standing outside LaGrave Avenue Christian Reformed Church near his city’s downtown area, he said he viewed Harris as a more trustworthy candidate and had been urging family members to vote for her. He believes she’s a step toward a brighter future.

A veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps, Bragg said Harris would never back events like the Jan. 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol, something he said for which Trump is to blame.

“They called it an insurrection. To me, that was treason,” Bragg said. “I can’t accept that. They attacked the Capitol. I swore an oath.”

Grand Rapids is the heart of Kent County, a west Michigan county that’s emerged as a key battleground in statewide elections in recent years. While Trump carried Kent County on his way to winning Michigan in 2016, Democrats at the top of the ticket have won there in each statewide election since 2018.

Long before Trump, Michigan has been an 11th-hour campaign stop for presidential hopefuls

Trump, in what’s become a tradition itself, held his final rally before Election Day in Grand Rapids, giving a nearly two-hour long speech to supporters at Van Andel Arena which ran past 2 a.m. Tuesday.

-Arpan Lobo

9:30 a.m.: Working out on Election Day in Warren

Some voters were headed to an exercise class instead of the polls shortly after 9:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Warren Community Center, south of 14 Mile Road west of Mound Road.

Kevin Klindt, 51, stood in line for about an hour for early voting at Warren City Hall roughly a week ago, he said. He voted for Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris.

“I think she’s a better leader than Donald Trump,” he said.

He’d like to see the Democrats successfully back a woman as president. He also backs the Democrats because he feels that party has helped him a lot with Social Security; he is on disability related to mental health.

Linda Gardner, 77, also at the center, said she voted absentee about a month ago for Harris.

“I think all these old guys need to just move over a little bit,” Gardner said, including GOP candidate former President Donald Trump, who is 78.

She recalled Trump’s portrayal of current President Joe Biden, 81, as too old and noted how close they are in age.

Gardner said she is also concerned that Trump is “quite unpredictable as far as his presence on the world stage.”

-Susan Tompor, columnist

9:10 a.m.: More than 800 register for same-day voting

More than 3.3 million voters already cast their vote in Michigan between absentee ballots and early voting, delivering a turnout rate of 45.8% of active, registered Michigan voters, said Angela Benander, chief communications officer for the Michigan Department of State, in a morning call with reporters.

On Tuesday, 8,000 absentee ballots were also returned and 829 people registered to vote Tuesday through same-day voter registration, she said. Turnout was also looking good at voting sites.

There was one location reporting massive lines: Grace Emmanuel Baptist Church in Flint, she said. However, the line there is said to be moving quickly, despite its presence.

Still making selections?Check out the Free Press voter guide here.

Double-check poll locations, voter registration and what to bring here.

Still have your absentee ballot? Don't mail it. Here's what to do.

There have been typical “blips” but no major concerns and no reports of weather-related issues or closures, said Benander. More than 100 department employees are monitoring on the ground Tuesday and agencies are prepared for any potential disruptions.

Benander also offered a story positive in the eyes of her team, saying a Wexford County high school government teacher took his whole class to watch him vote so they could see how the process works.

- Darcie Moran

8:30 a.m.: Groceries, day care and result timing in Warren

Vasilios Raspoptsis, 33, of Warren, said his family used to spend $200 or $220 a week on groceries before inflation took off. Now, it’s roughly $400 a week, even as they shop for deals at Meijer, Aldi and Costco.

He’s also a stay-at-home dad for a 3- and 4-year-old while his wife works in billing at a waste management company. It makes more sense instead of the family paying thousands of dollars for day care, he said.

He voted for Democratic President Barack Obama in 2012, and then voted for GOP candidate Donald Trump in 2016 and 2020. He again cast a vote for Trump on Tuesday at the Fitzgerald Recreation Center in Warren.

He’s dismayed to hear news reports suggesting it could take several days to know the results of the presidential election.

“Why can’t we get them counted in a day?”

Warren is the biggest city in Michigan that decided not to process absentee ballots before Election Day, despite a change in law that would allow it, the Detroit Free Press has reported.

It's also the only large community in Macomb County not preprocessing ballots, according to County Clerk Anthony Forlini.

Macomb County voters will help decide a number of key races in the election.

-Susan Tompor, columnist

8:20 a.m.: A call to civic duty in Dearborn

Christina Harrison, 34, of Dearborn is rooting for Harris to win the presidential race. But speaking at the Charles A. Lindbergh Elementary School in Dearborn, she said she hopes there will be no political violence whatever the outcome.

Harrison encouraged others to come out and vote, noting the importance of local races beyond the presidential campaign, she said.

"I think that everyone should feel like their voice matters, that it should be heard," Harrison said. "You can't expect any change to happen in the country unless you're willing to go out and vote for -- even if it's not the main two candidates. I think your voice should always be heard."

- Jenna Prestininzi

8:17 a.m.: Family voting and seeking trust in Trenton

Damian Fredrick walked out of Trenton City Hall with his wife and two daughters after casting their votes on Election Day.

Frederick, 50, of Trenton, said that not only was it his “civic duty” to vote, but he also wanted to show the importance of voting to his daughters, ages 20 and 22.

“We have a first-time voter in the house,” Frederick said. “So, I wanted her to be comfortable and know how important it is.”

Fredrick said the three issues that were on his mind were inflation, immigration and security. He also said that the tension headed into this year’s election was "higher than historically" for him.

“People are just aggressive,” Frederick said. “I even read it online. Their speech, the way they talk about their candidates. It’s just very aggressive.”

Fredrick said he hopes to see results by Thursday, and hopes that “things are done correctly.”

When will we see results?Learn more here.

“We have to have trust in our voting system,” he said. “And right now, I think that’s lacking.”

-Eric Guzman

7:34 a.m.: Thinking of ancestors while voting in Detroit

If Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris becomes president, it would be “monumental,” said 27-year-old Detroiter Lauryn Allen after she cast her ballot shortly after polls opened.

She waited in line for more than half an hour at the Northwest Activities Center in Detroit, but that didn’t really matter. It’s exciting because a line means people are voting, she said.

“It's humbling because I have that chance and opportunity to have a voice, and at one point, my ancestors didn’t,” said Allen, who lives on the west side of Detroit and works as a researcher at Henry Ford Hospital.

Watching Harris at rallies and on social media, Allen felt like the presidential candidate was the right choice. She was inspired by Harris’ passion.

A Harris win would mark a shift in how Black and brown girls see themselves and how men communicate with women, she said.

Allen expects to stay up all night for the results. In 2016 — the first presidential election she voted in — she recalls the quiet of her campus after GOP candidate Donald Trump won.

“But now me, being back home and me just feeling so energized and happy and excited for the future, I believe that when it gets closer to midnight and through the night, I'll be excited,” she said.

- Nushrat Rahman

7:20 a.m.: Youth eyes school board race in Dearborn

Sounds from a nearby factory and traffic filled the air as Election Day kicked off Tuesday and a few voters trickled into Salina Intermediate School in Dearborn.

Sporting an apron, flyers and a sign, 18-year-old Abdulrahman Masherah of Dearborn walked along the sidewalk outside the school. Masherah, a senior at Edsel Ford High School, came out to support his preferred candidate for the Dearborn Public Schools Board of Education, Jamal Aljahmi.

"As the youth, if we don't come out and help, what's the point? We need to be out here. We need to be involved in this type of stuff," Masherah said.

-Jenna Prestininzi

7 a.m.: ‘Happy’ in Detroit, on Election Day

A line formed just after 7 a.m. at the Northwest Activities Center in the Schulze neighborhood of Detroit as voters prepared to cast their ballot on Election Day. As they did, a DJ kicked things off to the tune of “Happy” by Pharrell Williams to energize the crowd outside as volunteers passed out political flyers to people.

“We're trying to bring excitement to voters, to get them up to vote,” said Jacqueline Kapilango, who goes by DJ Asset, a volunteer and DJ at the Polls.

- Nushrat Rahman

7 a.m.: Polls open across (most of) Michigan

Polls are open from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. local time in Michigan today. Four counties in Michigan's Upper Peninsula are on Central time, while the rest of the state is on Eastern time.

If you are in line by 8 p.m., you should remain in line and have the right to cast your vote.

6:45 a.m.: Voters line up in Warren

Some 25 voters already stood in line at Fitzgerald Recreation Center on Nine Mile Road in Warren before doors opened on Election Day — and the line quickly grew to more than 50.

Nathalia Damasceno, 30, who is Latina, is voting for the first time since becoming a U.S. citizen in 2023. She said she did not particularly like GOP candidate former President Donald Trump or Democrat Vice President Kamala Harris.

The student at Lawrence Tech University is frustrated with how Democrats let inflation get out of control and how housing prices soared.

She said Trump doesn’t sound like the best choice, either, given his selection of appointees to the U.S. Supreme Court and the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court abortion ruling. She’s also concerned that Trump supporters don’t want to hear differing viewpoints.

She doesn’t feel represented by either candidate, but she plans to vote for Kamala Harris.

Others in line planned to cast their ballot differently.

Michael Griffin, 71, of Warren, and his wife, Shirley Griffin, 74, stood among voters with plans to vote for Trump.

The retirees both voted for Trump when they lived in Indiana in 2016 and after they moved to Michigan in 2020.

Michael Griffin said he was “tired of all this crap, mainly the border and inflation.”

Griffin said he wasn’t a fan of boys playing in girls’ sports either. Concerns regarding transgender students have been fodder for GOP advertisements in the state.

But what really upsets him, he said, are illegal border crossings and how so many people have easily crossed the Mexican border into the United States.

He and his wife remain optimistic that Trump can win a second term in the White House.

“We talk about it all the time,” he said of the election.

“If he gets the turnout, he wins.”

— Susan Tompor, columnist

Michigan’s biggest 2024 election contests

The presidential race is looming over the whole nation, but is especially close in Michigan, one of seven key swing states this cycle. Polling in Michigan is close enough that it’s impossible to predict the outcome. And that’s not the only hot contest.

Michigan’s U.S. Senate race between Democrat Elissa Slotkin and Republican Mike Rogers has been running tight, with the open seat considered a key prize for either party.

There are also three ultracompetitive congressional races. The 7th and 8th Congressional Districts near Lansing and Saginaw, respectively, have open seats. In the 10th Congressional District, it’s a rematch between incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. John James and Democrat Carl Marlinga, who lost the district by just about half a percentage point last cycle.

-Staff

This is a breaking news story and will be updated.

Darcie Moran and Gina Kaufman also compiled and edited most entries with field reporters, and contributed writing to the entries.