ESCANABA — In support of a citizen-initiated ballot proposal, entitled “Promote the Vote 2022,” Delta County League of Women Voters (LWV) will be collecting petition signatures across the county until the end of June. The goal of “Promote the Vote 2022” is to protect Michigan residents’ fundamental right to vote, ensuring that all citizens have equal access to voting materials as well as improving election security and integrity.

“The League of Women Voters believe this is a very important initiative,” Sue Scheeneman, president of the Delta County League of Women Voters, said.

LWV is a nonpartisan political organization that promotes active and informed participation in government processes, along with educating the public on public policy and advocating for the rights of all citizens. Founded in 1951, LWV decided to get involved in the “Promote the Vote 2022” movement because their primary focus as an organization is providing voting services to people in the Delta County area.

“‘Promote the Vote 2022’ is to make voting more convenient and accessible to everyone in Michigan, that is the bottom line,” Scheeneman said. “While the voting system in Michigan is already secure, this amendment provides people with that extra assurance that their vote is counted.”

As a nonpartisan ballot initiative, ‘Promote the Vote 2022’ would protect voters from harassment, intimidation, and other forms of interference at the polls in ­November. In terms of the voting process, this initiative would allow voters to request absentee mail-in ballots for all future elections, provide drop boxes and ballot tracking services to voters, and ensure that in-person early voting is available nine days before Election Day.

Members of the military would see their voting rights expanded by this ballot initiative as well, with military and overseas ballots being considered valid and counted if postmarked by Election Day. Identity verification would also be simplified for voters, who would only need a photo ID or signed statement to confirm their identity.

To promote transparency and accuracy in vote counting, ‘Promote the Vote 2022’ would require election audits to be conducted by election officials in a public setting. Even further, canvassing boards would be required to certify the election results in accordance with official rules and the recorded number of votes cast.

“This ballot initiative is supported by several organizations throughout Michigan,” Scheeneman said. “We are one of many organizations encouraging citizens to sign this petition.”

Once signatures are collected and verified, the initiative will be placed on the midterm ballot in November. If passed in November, “Promote the Vote 2022” will amend Article 2, Sections 4 and 7 of the Michigan Constitution to include these additional provisions.

“Promote the Vote 2022 covers a lot of ground, and the petition is unique because it is a constitutional ballot initiative,” Scheeneman said.

Before getting on the ballot, however, “Promote the Vote 2022” must garner 425,059 petition signatures, a higher threshold to meet than most ballot proposals because the initiative would amend the state’s constitution. The organizations involved in this process must obtain and submit the required petition signatures by 5 p.m. on July 11 to be placed on the November ballot. The initiative will then be a “Yes” or “No” option on the ballot that must be approved by a majority of Michigan voters before becoming effective.

“We take this entire process very seriously,” Scheeneman said. “Collecting the signatures and the petitions is a very tedious process, so we want to ensure that everything is done right before submitting them to be reviewed and validated.”

LWV has already completed four petition-gathering events, all of which have been received well by the local community. Their first event, which was held during the last week of May in front of Canterbury Book Store on Ludington Street, attracted many locals despite being moved indoors due to rain.

“Collection has been very successful,” Scheeneman said. “We have been very pleased to see that people are seeking us out and maybe bringing a friend or two along to sign as well.”

More information regarding “Promote the Vote 2022” and petition event dates can be found at promotethevote2022.com or votersnotpoliticians.com. Individuals wishing to sign the petition must be at least 18 years old, a United States citizen, and registered to vote in Michigan. Those looking to register to vote can do so at MI.gov/VOTE.

Collection events in Delta County are scheduled to wrap-up before the end of June to ensure that members of LWV have enough time to sort, review, and identify any errors within their petitions. Those looking to sign the petition can contact Scheeneman at 906-786-9261, reach out to a League member, or email the organization at lwvdeltacounty@yahoo.com.

With 2022 being an election year, LWV is busy providing services to get community members involved in government and public policy initiatives. The organization will be hosting a candidate forum July 20 at the city council chambers at Escanaba City Hall, where candidates for a number of political positions, including the 108th District state representative seat, will answer questions and discuss their platforms.

More information regarding LWV and their services can be found on their website, lwvdeltacounty.org.