With early voting, Michigan election officials anticipate a low turnout for Tuesday's primary
DETROIT (CBS DETROIT) – Simply moving the Michigan presidential primary up one month meant a whole new ballgame for some election officials in Metro Detroit.
"We had all new rules and processes and procedures. We had some new technology," said Michael Siegrist, Canton Township's Clerk.
Staffing is the biggest challenge they've had to deal with thus far.
READ: Are you registered to vote in Michigan? How to check ahead of the 2024 primary
"A lot of our reliable poll workers in Canton, we need about 300 per election. Most of them are they are out of town, or they are essentially in Florida-a lot of snowbirds because of the demographic of who tends to work and volunteer for elections, so we were not able to have them come and work in February; they didn't return for us," Siegrist said.
They spent about $5,000 to recruit new election inspectors
READ: Where is your polling place for the 2024 Michigan primary? How to know where to vote.
"My hope is that with the expansion of mail voting and the option for people to vote in person early, that tomorrow will be a pretty quiet day," Siegrist said.
Something that won't be muted are members of the "Primary Pivot" Super PAC
"We want to save our democracy, and we don't save our democracy by not voting," said Tracy Pease, a member of Primary Pivot.
Amid a push from Democrats urging voters to choose an uncommitted option in response to President Biden's handling of the Israel-Hamas war.
READ: What do you need to vote in Michigan for the 2024 primary? Here's a checklist of what to bring
This group of democrats is encouraging their party to vote for Republican Nikki Haley.
"We are either going to save our democracy, or we're gonna usher in a dictator. It's your choice. Don't vote non-committal. Vote for Nikki Haley if you're a Democrat. Let's not give Donald Trump an opportunity to go ahead and steal our democracy," Pease said.
Polls close at 8 p.m. Tuesday.
