Justin F. Roebuck - Ottawa County Clerk/Register

10/09/2026

The integrity of your elections matters, regardless of party lines.

Lansing City Clerk Chris Swope and I come from different political parties, but we share a responsibility to deliver secure, accurate elections.

We teamed up for this Detroit News op-ed to explain the safeguards behind Michigan’s elections. Have questions about the process? We welcome them! And we encourage you to come see the work firsthand.
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We disagree on politics, not on Michigan's election security.

One of us is a Democrat who runs elections in Michigan’s capital city. The other is a Republican who runs elections in Ottawa County on Michigan’s west side. While we may disagree politically, we do agree on one thing: Michigan’s elections are accurate, safe and secure.

Let’s start with who runs them. Michigan doesn’t have one big election system someone could reach into and tamper with. It has more than 1,600 local county, city and township clerks, each responsible for the voter rolls, polling places and vote count in their own community. That makes Michigan one of the most decentralized election systems in the nation. The people handling your ballot are your neighbors, and you can call their office.

Every Michigan voter casts a paper ballot. When you vote in person, you feed it into the tabulator yourself. Those tabulators are not connected to the internet while votes are cast or counted, and your ballot drops into a sealed container, where it stays trackable, in case a recount or audit needs it. Before Election Day, every tabulator goes through a Logic and Accuracy Test that is open to the public.

Then there’s the rule that matters most to two officials from different parties: from the moment polls close to final certification, every count, every seal and every certification requires representatives of both parties, working together. Poll workers from both parties close out the machines and sign the printed results tape. They ride together to deliver sealed ballots and memory cards to the clerk. A county board of canvassers, two Republicans and two Democrats, checks every precinct’s paperwork in a public meeting. A bipartisan state board then certifies the results. No single party ever handles your ballot alone.

After the election, Michigan checks its work. Officials from both parties roll dice on a livestream to randomly choose which ballots to hand-count and compare to the machine totals. After 2024, that audit covered 166 precincts and nearly 120,000 ballots counted by hand. A separate audit of 378 precincts confirmed that more than 70 required procedures were followed. Any statewide race within 0.1% is recounted automatically.

Absentee ballots get the same care. We check the signatures on your application and the return envelope against the one on file. Drop boxes are monitored by a video camera. You can also track your ballot like a package at Michigan.gov/Vote.

We know trust in elections has been tested in recent years, and we take voters’ concerns seriously. That’s why we’re joining with In Michigan We Trust, a nonpartisan public education campaign that lays out how our elections actually work.

Election day is fast approaching. Absentee ballots are already out. So don’t hesitate to make your plan to vote. Early voting runs from Oct. 24 through Nov. 1, and Election Day is Nov. 3. Check your registration and find your polling place at Michigan.gov/Vote. And if you still have doubts, come see for yourself. Watch a tabulator test, observe the canvass or sign up to be a poll worker.

While we might disagree on many issues, we don’t disagree about this. In Michigan, your elections are run by your neighbors, from both parties, and they’re done right. You can count on your election being accurate, safe and secure on Nov. 3.

Chris Swope is the Lansing City Clerk. Justin Roebuck is the Ottawa County Clerk.

https://www.detroitnews.com/story/opinion/2026/10/08/are-michigan-elections-secure-two-clerks-explain-opinion/92152045007/

Two Michigan clerks from opposing parties explain how bipartisan oversight keeps the state's elections secure.

10/07/2026

Could not have started off this day any better than getting to hang out with Michael, have some candy and talk about voting! 🗳️ 🇺🇸 He’s a great spokesman for the elections process and was a huge help today with our demonstration! ❤️

10/05/2026

Great info from our team on the absentee ballot process!

09/30/2026

09/25/2026

Just one example of the incredible amount of work being done right now by your city and township clerks - ensuring that you have the opportunity to express your voice in this election! Nearly 64,000 ballots being mailed out this week all across Ottawa County! 🇺🇸🗳️

📬 3,350 absentee ballots are headed to Allendale voters today! The Allendale Township Clerk’s Office has been busy all week preparing these ballots for mailing. If you requested an absentee ballot, keep an eye on your mailbox - you should receive it within about a week.

Still need an absentee ballot? If you’re not on the permanent ballot list or haven’t submitted a request, you can request one online here: https://mvic.sos.state.mi.us/AVApplication/Index

Have questions about where you vote, what's on the ballot, and see if you requested an AV (absentee voter) ballot, click here: https://mvic.sos.state.mi.us/Voter/Index

Your Clerk and Deputy Clerk are here to help. Please call us at (616) 895-6295! Happy voting, Allendale! 🗳️

09/19/2026

They’re here!! (And they’re awesome 🇺🇸😎) Sarah helps me showcase the 2026 Michigan I Voted stickers. Get yours by voting early, absentee or on Election Day!

09/11/2026

Reminded on this 25th Anniversary of 9/11 of just how precious our freedom is. Let’s make sure that we are doing our part to carry the torch of the American idea. 🇺🇸

09/11/2026

I *do* love this job! This is the work of the American project - ensuring that all the pieces of the process are in place for citizens to choose their government. There are literally thousands of checks and balances in our system.

08/28/2026

I was proud to help author the op-ed below in the Lansing State Journal as a member of RightCount's Michigan Leadership Advisory Council.
Across Michigan, we are building a network of trusted local leaders who can speak clearly about the ways our elections are secure, share accurate information with citizens about how the process works, and help identify opportunities for continuous improvement with every election cycle.
https://www.lansingstatejournal.com/story/opinion/contributors/2026/08/26/secure-transparent-professional-why-michiganders-can-trust-elections/91441548007/?gnt-cfr=1&gca-cat=p&gca-uir=true&gca-epti=z115601p001150l004350c001150e008700v115601d--37--b--37--&gca-ft=242&gca-ds=sophi

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Secure, Transparent, and Professional: Why Michiganders Can Trust Our Elections
Lansing State Journal

August 26, 2026

Earlier this month, more than two million citizens across 83 counties made their voices heard in the August primary election. From precincts in Ottawa and Kent counties to the voting booths in Clinton Township and Onekama Township, thousands of dedicated election workers, clerks, and volunteers worked tirelessly to ensure that a highly competitive primary election was run smoothly, professionally, and accurately.

As we turn our attention toward the upcoming midterms, the stakes could not be higher. Michigan stands at the absolute center of the political landscape. The choices voters make this fall will not only determine the governance and direction of our state for the next several years but will also carry the potential to decide control of both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate.
When national attention is focused on Michigan, scrutiny naturally follows. That is why it is essential that every voter, regardless of political party, has complete confidence that our elections are secure, transparent, fair, and accurate.

According to a national survey by Ipsos, 75 percent of registered voters said the 2024 election was legitimate and accurate, compared to 58 percent after the 2020 election. Republican confidence surged from 26 percent in 2020 to 91 percent in 2024, a 65-point increase. However, nearly 40 percent of Democrats, whose candidate lost the 2024 presidential race, aren’t willing to say the same.

These results emphasize a damaging pattern: voters are more likely to trust elections only when their preferred candidate wins. Misinformation can fuel suspicion and undermine confidence in elections. Education, transparency, and participation are the keys to building public trust.

To meet this vital moment, we are proud to announce the formation of RightCount’s Leadership Advisory Council in Michigan. As a coalition of county and township clerks, legal advisors, policy leaders, and former state officials, our council has come together with a single, clear purpose: to build faith in our electoral process, defend the rule of law, and support the public officials sworn to ensure legal and accurate vote counts.

Michiganders take great pride in participating in democracy, and it’s essential that every eligible voter has confidence that their voice is heard and their vote is counted. Across our state, bipartisan election officials work diligently to uphold election integrity and ensure voters can trust the outcome. Localized administration is rooted in the U.S. Constitution’s principle of federalism, which intentionally grants states authority over elections to ensure decisions are made close to home.

RightCount was organized specifically to restore faith in the electoral process by elevating trusted local leaders, countering misinformation, standing vigilant against any efforts at fraud, and providing transparent facts about how our election process works. Survey research conducted by RightCount into the messengers and reforms most effective in building confidence among voters in Michigan confirmed a clear truth: voters want facts, strong safeguards, and total operational transparency.

Our research also revealed that voter confidence in Michigan increases significantly when citizens learn more about our state’s rigorous, multi-layered security protocols, such as pre-election testing of voting equipment, mandatory paper ballot trails, bipartisan canvassing boards, and post-election audits. Furthermore, voters express high levels of trust in their local municipal and county clerks, who live, work, and serve directly within their communities.

In the coming months, we will work together to actively recruit and mobilize local leaders across Michigan. Our efforts will focus on educating the public about our state’s election safeguards, answering voters' questions directly, and encouraging citizens to get involved as workers, poll challengers, or simply observers of the process.

Michigan’s election system belongs to the people of Michigan. As we march toward November, our coalition is committed to ensuring that the rule of law is followed, every legal vote is counted, and voters can be assured that the results are accurate.

Lisa Posthumus Lyons, Kent County Clerk and RightCount State Chair of Michigan
Eric Doster, former General Counsel, Michigan Republican Party
Tony Daunt, former Member of the State Board of Canvassers
Eileen McNeil, President of Citizens for Traditional Values
Justin Roebuck, Ottawa County Clerk
Kim Meltzer, Clinton Township Clerk

According to an Ipsos survey, 75% of registered voters said the 2024 election was legitimate and accurate, compared to 58% after the 2020 election.

08/05/2026

Election results are starting to roll in!

Stay tuned as we begin receiving updates from across the precincts. We will let you know as soon as all precincts are reporting.

You can always watch in real time as we update the results website: https://buff.ly/ALkPL9u