Michigan nears repeal of ban on giving voters rides to polls

Detroit advocate for voting rights and education dies at 97

Mildred R. Madison, the longtime voting rights advocate, politician and education authority –who helped lead the ultimately successful campaign to have the Detroit City Council members elected by district, thus improving government accountability and responsibility – died on August 16, 2023 in Detroit.

LANSING, Mich. (FOX 2) - The Michigan legislature has repealed a ban on giving someone a ride to the polls on election day after state senators passed it along party lines.

The voting followed a similar pattern in the house in September when the amendment cleared by a similar margin. The governor is expected to sign the bill into law. The bill originally banned any person from hiring "a motor vehicle or other conveyance" intended to take a voter to the polls.

The single exclusion was for someone who couldn't physically walk.

Expanding access to voting in Michigan and reducing the barriers to casting a ballot has been a core argument of Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, who applauded the bill's passage.

"Every Michigander deserves equal access to the ballot. The state’s longstanding ban on hired transportation to the polls unfairly restricted the voting rights of seniors, people with disabilities, young voters, and anyone with transportation challenges," she said in a statement.

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