October 9, 2018, Last day to Register

See more information here

Or go to your local Secretary of State’s office

Why should I register to vote? 

There are many things going on in politics--for sure! Some you can affect by voting; some you can affect in other ways. But, if you want to participate in democracy, you must register to vote and you must vote. In Michigan, we have outstanding candidates whom you can vote for who share the PEG mission of protecting equality in government. We will be highlighting them closer to the mid-terms. There are also three ballot proposals that will affect our state and us. Here they are:

Remember: You cannot vote unless you are registered

Whether you have photo ID or not the day of the election, you cannot vote if you are not registered. There are options for registration if you do not have picture ID. For further information, you may see the ACLU’s Voting Rights Guide .

Thursday, October 4. Prepare for the Midterm Election

Presented by the Michigan Democracy Institute Consortium at HFC and the League of Women Voters, Wayne County. For more info, contact the League of Women Voters of Dearborn/Dearborn Heights at [email protected] or (313) 278-6476. Forfa Auditorium, Building L, Henry Ford College, 5101 Evergreen Rd, Dearborn.

Friday, October 5. GOTV Rally with Congresswoman Grace Meng (NY-06)

Michigan Democratic Women’s Caucus Get Out the Vote Rally with guest speaker, Grace Meng, 6th District, New York. Refreshments and door prizes. RSVP to [email protected] . High school and college students are encouraged to bring resumes and identification. Students are encouraged to speak with candidates and campaigns about paid and unpaid internships and paid campaign jobs. Free. New Hope Baptist Church, 218 Chapin St, Ann Arbor . 6–8 pm.

Monday, October 8. Dems Voter Guide event with Barbara McQuade

In 2016, 61% of the people who voted for Hillary Clinton did NOT vote for the Democratic candidates for the State Supreme Court. This year’s voter guide provides Democratic voters with the information they need.

Barbara McQuade, the former United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan and political analyst for NBC and MSNBC, will be speaking and answering questions.

Click HERE for a Voter Guide Fact Sheet for the what, how and whys of the Voter Guide. Here’s how your support can help us make a difference:

Click here to donate online. Checks can be made out to Michigan Democratic Party, and will be picked up from you by a volunteer. Please leave the memo line blank. Light refreshments will be served. Pretzel Bell, 226 South Main St, Ann Arbor . 5–7 pm

Fight big money with BIG organizing

Attend a MI-Resistance calling party and h elp Michigan Dems take back our state:

Help pass Proposal 2 opposing gerrymandering

Support the Prop 2 ballot initiative on gerrymandering opposition. The League of Women Voters--and many other groups--support Voters Not Politicians. Supporting specific candidates in the primaries and beyond is good, but will have limited effect if the voting system is not fixed.  This article by Bridge illustrates one reason we need to be supporting Voters Not Politicians in a variety of ways, especially with Proposition 2.

VNP needs canvassers who can explain the redistricting proposal that will be on the ballot in November. Newcomers and experienced knockers are all welcome. More information on opportunities including in Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, Trenton, Flat Rock, Woodhaven, Grosse Ile, Brownstown are available by clicking here .

Featured this week:

Thursday, October 11: Dexter House Party for VNP

3095 Fieldstone Dr, Dexter, 48130 . 7–8:30 pm

Volunteers are needed now!

Voter registration deadline is Tuesday, October 9. NextGen America is working on campuses throughout the United States to help register students to vote. Volunteers are needed to staff their voter registration tables. If you are interested in volunteering for 2-hour shifts on the campus of either the University of Michigan or Eastern Michigan, contact Hudson Villeneuve at [email protected] or call/text him at (810) 516-6314. Hudson will work with you to find a time and location at U-M, and/or will put you in touch with the NextGen leadership person at EMU.

Nextgen America has openings for organizing positions and paid fellowships

Click here to apply . For more information on the positions or the canvassing, reach out to Jennifer Alberts at [email protected] or at (734) 560-8172 .

Volunteer for the Michigan Dems

Join friends, old and new, to talk to voters about issues they care about and ask them to vote for Democrats on November 6. Success in the election depends on you getting involved.

To find the many various activities, places and times and to sign up c l i ck here .

Washtenaw County Democratic Party debate watch parties

The PEG event calendar is provided as a community service to its readers, and is based on information provided by the event sponsors. Inclusion of material does not imply endorsement by PEG.

And...even more events!

Be sure to check out the PEG Calendar on our website for a comprehensive list of activists events happening in October.

Candidate volunteer opportunities, yard signs and campaign material availability

Voters Not Politicians needs your help to pass Proposal 2 on Tuesday, November 6!

Text YESON2 to 555-888 to connect with the campaign, or visit votersnotpoliticians.com to volunteer or donate. Voters Not Politicians needs canvassers who can explain Prop 2, the redistricting proposal that will be on the ballot in November. Newcomers and experienced knockers are all welcome. Click here for more information.

Here are sources to get you ready to vote in the Midterm Elections

This November you will have to vote line by line

In the past, a single mark could automatically count for candidates of a single party, from governor to county commissioner. Now, after court decisions, each candidate must be voted on separately . -clickondetroit.org

Save your time — don’t stand in line! On November 6 — Vote absentee

This requires some work ahead of time. Washtenaw County voters: Click here , and follow the directions carefully . For more information, contact Lawrence Kestenbaum, clerk/register, 200 N Main St, Suite 120 Ann Arbor MI 48104. Phone: (734) 222-6730. Fax: (734) 222-6528. Email: [email protected]

Additional voting resources

Essential: The Michigan Voter Information Center

Do you want to see a blank sample of your ballot? Do you want to track the status of your absentee ballot? Do you want to verify your voter registration? Do you want to know your voting district? Click here to access the Michigan Voter Information Center.

Boots on the ground

Looking for something to do to make a difference? The midterm elections are in 35 days. If you’ve not yet started to help on a campaign, it is not too late! Find a candidate or two to support, contact their headquarters, ask how to help. If not sure where to start looking for information about candidates, issues, etc., check out the League of Women Voters’ website:  https://www.vote411.org/ . Check out more ideas here. - Rogan’s List

Don’t be a “fashion don’t”

Michigan has prohibited the practice of displaying election-related materials at the polls for decades. This includes clothing and buttons as well as materials such as pamphlets, fliers and stickers. You cannot display such items in the polling place or within 100 feet of an entrance to a polling place. If you go to the polls with a shirt or button bearing election-related images or slogans, you will be asked to cover or remove it. Read SOS here .

Michigan uses “good, old fashioned paper ballots” to vote

Nationwide elections officials know that as the midterm elections loom, replacing vulnerable voting machines—and finding the funding to do it—remain troublingly unfinished business . But, in Michigan, the August 7, 2018 primary was the first statewide election in which every city and township used all new voting equipment that includes optical-scans to scan and tabulate paper ballots, accessible voting devices for voters with disabilities, and election-management and reporting software. See other upgrades here . -Wired Magazine, Michigan.gov

A two-page brochure from the Michigan Secretary of State's office

This document provides a ton of facts about the voting process in an easy-to-use format.

This November you will have to vote line by line

In the past, a single mark could automatically count for candidates of a single party, from governor to county commissioner. Now, after court decisions, each candidate must be voted on separately . -clickondetroit.org

Register and vote, protect the children

The Trump administration does not know where 1,488 migrant children are. The New York Times wrote that the revelation has “raised concerns that they could end up with human traffickers or be used as laborers by people posing as relatives.” They depend on us for justice in the midterms. Read more here. - The New York Times

Moving them by dark of night--as the Nazis did

According to The New York Times , the Trump Administration has been loading hundreds of migrant children onto buses in the middle of the night to bring them to a tent camp in West Texas, where they will sleep in bunks, with no schooling and little access to legal services. The government is struggling to accommodate 13,000 migrant children, many of whom would have been housed in private foster families in the past. (The number of willing foster families are drying up as many of them have been apprehended as illegal aliens.) Very troubling is that the average length of time the children are kept in custody has nearly doubled since last year, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. Evelyn Stauffer, a spokeswoman for that department which is calling for systemic reform, says that the number of parentless children “are a symptom of a larger problem, namely a broken immigration system.”

New rules target immigrants who legally use public benefits

Trump aims to restrict new green cards for millions of poor immigrants who depend on programs like food assistance and Section 8 housing vouchers. Read more here. - The New York Times

Portraits in Progressive Activism: Featuring Leslie McGraw and family

As we lead-up to the mid-term elections, our political engagement and commitment to activism is more important than ever. There are many wonderful Michiganders committed to creating positive change, sometimes against daunting odds.

On the link below, you will find the link to a PEG interview about the unconventional activist, Leslie McGraw, who is the grand-niece of the first voting rights martyr in America. Check out the  new  special section,  Portraits of Progressive Activists , under the Highlights tab on the PEG website at  http://equalityingov.org/highlights/portraits-of-activists  for the most recent interviews!

ICE grants Detroit man extra year

Francis Anwana , a deaf and disabled immigrant, has been permitted to stay in the United States for at least one more year.  Read more here .

PEG is on Twitter

Please, don't leave us lonely. Make sure to follow us at https://twitter.com/equalityingov for time-sensitive announcements, events, news, and reminders!

PEG Facebook posts are driving important discussion online

If you haven't checked out our Facebook page yet, you might consider it. We have daily posts on a variety of topics that either protect or threaten equality in the American government and its people. To the left, you will find one of our recent, popular posts. Check out more on our Facebook page!

Looking for more information?

Check out the equalityingov.org webpage. Find out everything you want to know about who we are; the issues and organizations we endorse; an events calendar; and past issues of our newsletter and Facebook postings. It’s all there on the Web! Click here to see us on Facebook and our frequent posts or tweet us!

 University of Michigan launches its Big Ten Vote Challenge. Watch Video Below!

Thanks to Newsletter contributors: Bernie Banet, Carolyn Christopher, Ellen Halter, Laurie Williams, Leslie McGraw, Richard Gaeth, Richard Price, Constance Cook, Susan Ayer and Chuck Newman for their help preparing this newsletter. Write us at [email protected] if you would like help create our weekly newsletter. It’s fun and no ongoing commitment is required.