Michigan's upcoming fall elections will highlight significant strides in voting accessibility. Recent measures, such as nine days of early voting and prepaid return postage for mail ballots, reflect a commitment to streamlining the voting experience in the state.

Khyla D. Craine, deputy legal director with the Michigan Department of State, said the shift underscores the state's proactive approach to enhance voter participation and ensure a smoother electoral process.

"A really big deal for Michiganders [is] that you can be placed on a permanent absentee-ballot list, and that is with your local township or city clerk's office. That would mean that, every election, you would receive an absentee ballot to complete," Craine said.

Craine added the Michigan primary for statewide offices will be held on Tuesday, August 6, and the General Election is Tuesday, November 5. She recommends confirming voting details online at michigan.gov/vote.

The Committee for Safe and Secure Elections is hosting several tabletop discussions to be better prepared for any out-of-the-ordinary instances that may occur. In previous elections, Michigan has seen bomb threats at polling locations and mysterious substances in ballot envelopes.

Tina Barton, a committee member and senior election expert with The Elections Group, said it's important to bring all stakeholders into the discussions.

"2020 brought about something that we had not really experienced in our careers up to this point. Election officials have become the enemy to individuals who are not seeing the process go as they would like or the outcome go as they would like," she said.

Barton added the discussions aim to establish protocols for chain of command, continuity of operations, crisis communication and coordination with law enforcement.

In Ohio, the upcoming elections could have a significant effect on public education.

Educators are urging voters to consider how the candidates' policies could shape the future of schools, including everything from how schools are funded to ensuring access to a well-rounded education for all students.

Scott DiMauro, president of the Ohio Education Association, emphasized the importance of participation in this election.

"Virtually every aspect of educators' lives is affected, one way or another, by decisions that either elected politicians or people that they appoint to public office make over our school system," DiMauro pointed out.

The union is stressing the need for elected officials who support public education and show respect for those who make it a career. Critics of the current system point to growing support for school choice initiatives and voucher programs, which divert funds from public schools to allow some parents to pay private-school tuition. The debate continues to shape the discourse around Ohio's education policies.

With 90% of Ohio students in public schools, DiMauro argued elected leaders should be advocates for fair funding for schools and resist efforts to limit curriculum content. He added another key topic is accountability and respect for educators. DiMauro believes supporting teachers is critical for student success.

"We have to make sure that we are attracting and we're retaining good people as educators in the classroom," DiMauro urged. "So that kids really get the kind of individual attention that they need."

He predicted the election will decide not only funding and policies but the future direction of Ohio's education system as a whole.

Nonprofit leaders from around the country gathered on Capitol Hill Tuesday, pushing for what they are calling "sweeping democracy reforms," in Georgia and nationwide.

Their focus is on advancing key legislation to secure voting rights and ballot access for all Americans. The measures include the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Freedom to Vote Act, which would set national voting standards, including automatic voter registration and two weeks of early voting.

Christine Wood, co-director of a coalition called the Declaration for American Democracy, sees the need as urgent. She said voting barriers have only accelerated since the 2013 Shelby County v. Holder Supreme Court ruling.

"Every year, bills are introduced and passed in state legislatures that we know have a disproportionate impact specifically on communities of color," Wood pointed out. "Especially when you look at things like closing of polling places, putting restrictions on early voting or vote-by-mail."

Georgia has been at the forefront of voting access issues, with laws like 2021's Senate Bill 202, which restricts early voting and ballot drop boxes and criminalizes providing water and food to people waiting in line at polling places.

David Walrod, president of the Fairfax County Federation of Teachers, also took to Capitol Hill to advocate for accessible and efficient voting processes. He said safeguarding voting rights should be a bipartisan priority. As an educator, Walrod believes being able to vote without barriers is crucial and reflects the core democratic values taught in schools.

"We recognize that one of the roles of public schools is educating students on the role of the government, and educating students about what it means to live in a democracy," Walrod explained. "Most states have some sort of a civics requirement, some sort of a government participation requirement."

The groups also are advocating for the Native American Voting Rights Act to improve voting access for tribal communities, and the Washington, D.C. Admission Act, seeking full congressional representation for the nearly 700,000 residents of Washington, D.C.


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The highly anticipated debate between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris is tonight, and as Election Day inches closer, more attention is being placed on the role tossup states like Nevada will play.

Harris has launched an "issues" page on her campaign website, outlining a number of her policy decisions and how they differ from Project 2025, the controversial policy playbook issued by a right-wing think tank called the Heritage Foundation. While Trump has tried to distance himself from Project 2025, it has proved to be quite a challenge since many influential Trump loyalists and allies are behind it.

Julie Millican, vice president of Media Matters for America, said the Heritage Foundation has a proven "track record of success."

"They have consistently gotten the majority of their mandates from leadership proposals implemented by incoming Republican administrations, again going back to Reagan," Millican pointed out.

Millican noted in the first year of the Trump administration, the Heritage Foundation touted more than two-thirds of their mandates were enacted under Trump. She emphasized it speaks to why Project 2025 has to be taken seriously, which would revamp or completely eliminate certain federal agencies such as the Department of Education and the National Weather Service.

The debate will be hosted by ABC and will start at 6 p.m. PT.

Millican considers Project 2025 to be what she calls "expansive and extreme," which she said can lead voters to feel overwhelmed. In her perspective, Project 2025 boils down to an agenda of wanting control over many aspects of everyday life.

"There are strict definitions of who it is that can be married," Millican outlined. "There are strict definitions about what women's role is, which is primarily just to have children and raise children, and outside of that they don't have a lot of other worth."

Millican encouraged voters to contrast Project 2025's proposals with their own personal values as it can be an easier and more effective way to determine the impact the playbook could have on the things that matter most to them.


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