Hayley Harding

Hayley Harding

Reporter, Votebeat

Hayley Harding is a Detroit-based reporter who has covered government and the people who run it at all levels. She covers voting and election administration in Michigan. Before that, she was a data journalist on The Detroit News’ investigations team, where she covered population trends, social problems, and more. She has worked for the Idaho Statesman in Boise and for the Salisbury Daily Times in Salisbury, Maryland. A Michigander by birth, Hayley graduated from Ohio University.

The measure from Americans for Citizen Voting is stricter in its requirements — and its penalties — than an earlier one.

But wrinkles in state law could make it tough to get both proposals before voters.

The Michigan Election Security Act largely sidesteps the issue of noncitizen-voting, but sponsors say more targeted legislation is in the works.

Some communities vote Tuesday on local issues and school funding. The timing is a function of state law, and it helps districts plan their budgets.

Between a new vote and a nearly identical petition drive starting soon, voters still have a chance to weigh in on proof of citizenship in the state.

Haoxiang Gao’s case has prompted legislative proposals and a petition drive after he allegedly used a loophole to register and vote despite not being a citizen.

Organizers of a petition drive get the go-ahead for their campaign to put the proposed requirement before voters in November 2026.

The order would require voters prove their citizenship and submit their ballots so that they arrive no later than when the polls close.

The Secretary of State’s review found scattered cases with no signs of a larger conspiracy.

They’re arguing that voters don’t have the power to set election laws through ballot initiatives, based on a theory that the court has repeatedly rejected.