Macomb County Clerk Carmella Sabaugh, who has largely set the pace in technological improvements by Michigan clerks, has added a nice little improvement to her election night web page for 2014.
The new feature allows voters to keep tabs on the flow of election returns. with a separation for absentee votes and in-person voting.
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For political junkies, this means that it’s easy to track throughout the night which returns are coming in early or late throughout the night for each local legislative and county commissioner district. In addition, these political watchers can form their own analysis by comparing votes cast by absentee ballot (which are typically dominated by senior citizens) vs. the turnout at the polls.
To access Sabaugh’s election night web page, click here.
Then, consider these options:
1. The My Ballot link lets voters see all races that appear only on their ballot, thanks to Google Maps integration. Voters need not know their precinct number or any district numbers to see informative results.
2. The My Watch List link lets voters tag specific elections to see results throughout the night, such as the state representative race on the northern end, the county commission race on the southern end, or ballot proposals.
3. The Precinct Reporting Details shows the times local clerks report results throughout the night.
4. Voters may sign up for text or email alerts from the election results page to show when unofficial results for specific races are reported, when 25%, 50% or 100% of all results are in, or even when the lead changes in specific races throughout the night. It is also easy to turn off the alerts.
Macomb County Chief Deputy Clerk Todd Schmitz said these features are designed to provide the electorate with an easy way to keep tabs on returns and to keep local clerks accountable for their efficiency in reporting results.
One other item that political fanatics may appreciate while impatiently waiting for returns to come in is Sabaugh’s online archives, which provides Macomb County election results from 1838 to the present.
