Early in-person voting is underway, which for many of us represents the light at the end of the tunnel of this long, grueling and historically close election cycle.

While every election cycle, particularly presidential elections, feel like they can last forever, most will agree that the 2024 election has been on another level.

During the 2020 election, many changes were made to how votes were cast and counted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

That election saw early voting and absentee voting skyrocket in a way that was unprecedented in American history.

While nobody wants to go back to 2020, the lessons learned and the access to increased voting availability are a good thing moving forward.

The 2022 midterm elections saw Michigan residents vote to adopt proposal 2, also known as “Promote the Vote” which allowed for early in-person voting in statewide and federal elections, prepaid return postage for absentee voter applications and ballots among other initiatives.

The adoption of this proposal has changed the game for Michigan voters and has allowed more and more Michigan residents to make their voices heard in elections.

Voting isn’t always easy and although voter participation in recent years has grown, there are still many American’s who choose either not to vote, or are impacted by external events which make getting to the polls on election day difficult.

Anyone who has lived in the Upper Peninsula will tell you that inclement weather in early November isn’t rare. So if you don’t want to risk the weather or illness or flat tires or any other situation that could impact your ability to vote, vote early.

Many early voting locations in the area will be available starting today, including Peter White Library in Marquette which will be open each day from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. to cast your ballot.

To find your polling site, or find a ride to the polls, visit https://www.michigan.gov/sos/elections/voting/early-in-person-voting.

— The Mining Journal, Marquette