Michigan election 2022: Sharpies, selfies and your other ballot questions answered

Absentee voting in Michigan is underway, and hundreds of thousands of voters in the state have already returned their ballots. More are expected to do so as Election Day nears. And on Nov. 8, voters across the state voting in person will head to polling locations, which are open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The Free Press is here to answer common questions about filling out your ballot and voting in Michigan. If you have any questions about voting or election processes in Michigan you'd like answered, you can send an email to chendrickson@freepress.com with the subject "Election Question."

We'll kick things off with a refresher on which pen to use to mark your vote, whether you can take a selfie with your ballot and more.

More:How Michigan officials remove dead, unqualified voters from rolls

Yes, you can use a Sharpie pen to fill out your ballot

Rumors about ballot marking devices (i.e. pens) swirled during the 2020 election. So-called Sharpiegate raised alarms that voters who used Sharpie pens to fill out their ballots would not have their votes count. The concerns were unfounded. Ballots marked with Sharpie pens are read correctly by tabulators.

Michigan's Secretary of State's Office notes that using a Sharpie permanent marker to fill out a ballot "will not invalidate or cancel a ballot or vote."

The Sharpie ink can bleed through the other side of the ballot, but that's not a problem! The ballots are designed so that the bubbles voters fill in to mark their preferred candidate or vote on a proposal don't overlap on the other side of the ballot. So there's no way that a bubble that bleeds through on the other side of the ballot can change or in any way impact votes made on the opposite side of the ballot.

More:Absentee ballots now available in Michigan: Here's how to request, return one

You can take a photo of your ballot or a photo after you vote, but you can't take ballot selfie

Voters can take a photo of their absentee ballot or snag a pic of their ballot in the voting booth if they're voting in person. But Michigan voters can't take ballot selfies!

You can share a picture of your ballot once you are at least 100 feet from the entrance of a polling place. Michigan election officials are encouraged to set up "selfie stations" at polling locations outside the voting area where voters can take pictures of themselves after they vote.

More:Proposal 2 in Michigan: A guide to the wide-ranging amendment focused on elections

Tabulators and poll books are not connected to the internet while the polls are open and ballots tabulated

Election workers use an electronic poll book to check in voters at polling locations and record which voters have returned absentee ballots. The poll book used on Election Day is not connected to the internet.

Similarly, voting machines are not connected to the internet while ballots are tabulated. Some communities may connect ballot tabulators to the internet after all ballots have been tabulated in order to transmit unofficial election results.

Before any ballots are counted, election officials test voting machines to ensure they will count votes accurately. Officials also preserve the paper ballots, creating an additional layer of election security.

If you're in line to vote by 8 p.m., you can still register to vote and cast a ballot

Polling locations in Michigan open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. But if you're in line by 8 p.m., you can still vote!

Michigan also allows those eligible to register to vote to do so on Election Day at their local clerk's office if they show proof of residency. Those in line by 8 p.m. on Election Day can register and vote.

Clara Hendrickson fact-checks Michigan issues and politics as a corps member with Report for America, an initiative of The GroundTruth Project. Make a tax-deductible contribution to support her work at bit.ly/freepRFA. Contact her at chendrickson@freepress.com or 313-296-5743. Follow her on Twitter @clarajanehen.