Michigan Voting Rights Act

This four-bill package to create a Michigan Voting Rights Act (MVRA) would build on previous state efforts to protect free, fair, and accessible elections for all eligible voters in Michigan by safeguarding existing ballot access and shielding elections from future efforts to undermine fairness or restrict participation. Senate bills 961-964 will reduce barriers for communities that have historically faced unequal participation– including people of color, people with disabilities, and voters who speak languages other than English.

SB 961 would create a State Voting Rights Act to prohibit discriminatory election practices. It would prohibit state and local governments from implementing laws, policies, or election practices that result in unequal voter participation or limit a protected group’s ability to cast their vote. SB 962 would establish a nonpartisan and transparent voter institute and database to provide research and training on elections. This database would require the collection, archiving, and public posting of statewide election and voting data, including precinct-level results, registration lists, polling place and drop box locations, district maps, and related records. SB 963 would expand the jurisdictions that must provide language assistance for any election materials. SB 964 would enhance and clarify protections for voters with disabilities by providing curbside voting, increasing transparency around election changes, and permitting aid for voters who need additional support to cast their ballot, including allowing food, water, and other necessities for those waiting in line. 

The package responds to the federal push for the SAVE Act and Michigan’s own House Joint Resolution B (HJR B), both of which have not passed (as of 06/17/26) but would impose barriers to voting, such as requiring Michiganders to provide documentary proof of citizenship when registering to vote and a government-issued photo ID when casting a ballot, making this package even more necessary to guard eligible voters right to vote. The MVRA is necessary in response to the recent Supreme Court decision in Louisiana v. Callais (April 2026), which devastated key protections within the federal Voting Rights Act.