MICHIGAN ELECTION LAW
Act 116 of 1954
168.822 Board of county canvassers; canvass of returns, conclusion; failure to certify election results.
Sec. 822.
(1) The board of county canvassers shall then proceed without delay to canvass the returns of votes cast for all candidates for offices voted for and all questions voted on at the election, according to the precinct returns, early voting returns, and absent voter counting board returns filed with the probate judge or presiding probate judge by the county, city, and township clerks, or for local elections according to the precinct returns filed with the county clerk, and must conclude the canvass at the earliest possible time and, except as otherwise provided in section 842(2), in every case no later than the fourteenth day after the election.
(2) Subject to section 842(2), if the board of county canvassers fails to certify the results of any election for any officer or proposition by the fourteenth day after the election as provided, the board of county canvassers shall immediately deliver to the secretary of the board of state canvassers all records and other information pertaining to the election. Subject to section 842(2) and (3), the board of state canvassers shall meet immediately and make the necessary determinations and certify the results not later than the twentieth day after the election. The board of county canvassers and all other county staff necessary to complete the canvass must be present at all times during the completion of the canvass by the board of state canvassers. All costs associated with the completion of the canvass must be borne by the county involved.
(3) It is the ministerial, clerical, and nondiscretionary duty of each board of county canvassers, and each of the members of the board of county canvassers, to certify election results based solely on the statements of returns from the election day precincts, early voting sites, and absent voter counting boards in the county and any corrected returns.
(4) As used in this section and section 842, "to certify" means to make a signed, written statement.
History: 1954, Act 116, Eff. June 1, 1955 ;-- Am. 1958, Act 192, Eff. Sept. 13, 1958 ;-- Am. 1963, 2nd Ex. Sess., Act 38, Imd. Eff. Dec. 27, 1963 ;-- Am. 1968, Act 65, Eff. July 1, 1968 ;-- Am. 2013, Act 51, Imd. Eff. June 11, 2013 ;-- Am. 2018, Act 614, Eff. Mar. 28, 2019 ;-- Am. 2023, Act 269, Eff. Feb. 13, 2024 ;-- Am. 2024, Act 74, Eff. Apr. 2, 2025
Compiler's Notes:
Section 3 of Act 65 of 1968 provides: “This act shall take effect on July 1, 1968, except in any county with a population of 400,000 or more it shall take effect on July 1, 1970.”
PopularName Notes:
Election Code
Notes of Decisions
Hanlin v. Saugatuck Twp., 829 N.W.2d 335 (Mich. Ct. App. 2013).
“821, and to canvass the returns of votes cast, MCL 168.822(1). Upon completion of its canvass, a county board of canvassers shall certify a statement of the number of votes cast and the manner in which the votes were cast.”
Michigan State A. Philip Randolph Inst. v. Johnson, 209 F. Supp. 3d 935 (E.D. Mich. 2016).
“628) (“On information and belief, individuals responsible for programming, coding and printing ballots will begin setting ballots no later than 70 days prior to Election Day (by August 30, 2016), and some may begin as early as .”
Wills v. Iron Cnty. Bd. of Canvassers, 455 N.W.2d 405 (Mich. Ct. App. 1990).
· cites it 2× “MCL 168.822(1); MSA 6.1822(1). If the board fails to certify the results within fourteen days, it must submit all necessary records and information to the state board of canvassers, which then has ten *803 days to certify the results.”
King v. Whitmer (E.D. Mich. 2020).
· cites it 2× “Mich. Comp. Laws §§ 168.822 , 168.842.0. If Plaintiffs had legitimate claims regarding the manner by which ballots were processed and tabulated on or after Election Day, they could have brought the instant action on Election Day or during the weeks of canvassing that…”
Michigan All. for Retired Americans v. Sec'y of State (Mich. Ct. App. 2020).
“2 The Court of Claims held in relevant part: “[c]onsistent with MCL 168.822, the timely postmarked ballot must be received by the clerk’s office no later than 14 days after the election has occurred, so as not to interfere with the board of county canvassers’ duty to certify…”
Angelic Johnson v. Sec'y of State (Mich. 2020).
“The results are then canvassed by the board of county canvassers, see MCL 168.822(1), which declares the winners of county and local races, MCL 168.”
— Mich. Comp. Laws § 168.822(1) — 3 cases
Hanlin v. Saugatuck Twp., 829 N.W.2d 335 (Mich. Ct. App. 2013).
“821, and to canvass the returns of votes cast, MCL 168.822(1). Upon completion of its canvass, a county board of canvassers shall certify a statement of the number of votes cast and the manner in which the votes were cast.”
Wills v. Iron Cnty. Bd. of Canvassers, 455 N.W.2d 405 (Mich. Ct. App. 1990).
“MCL 168.822(1); MSA 6.1822(1). If the board fails to certify the results within fourteen days, it must submit all necessary records and information to the state board of canvassers, which then has ten *803 days to certify the results.”
Angelic Johnson v. Sec'y of State (Mich. 2020).
“The results are then canvassed by the board of county canvassers, see MCL 168.822(1), which declares the winners of county and local races, MCL 168.”
— Mich. Comp. Laws § 168.822(2) — 1 case
Wills v. Iron Cnty. Bd. of Canvassers, 455 N.W.2d 405 (Mich. Ct. App. 1990).
“MCL 168.822(1); MSA 6.1822(1). If the board fails to certify the results within fourteen days, it must submit all necessary records and information to the state board of canvassers, which then has ten *803 days to certify the results.”
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