Benton Harbor City Commissioners have approved an agreement with Berrien County for early voting. The moves comes after voters in Michigan last year approved a proposal requiring at least nine days of early voting before state and federal elections. At a Tuesday meeting, commissioners signed off on a resolution from City Clerk Tiffany Moore to contract with the county so the county can handle the cost.
“I will keep you guys updated when I learn more from the county on moving that forward,” Moore said.
It was noted handling those elections for nine days more than usual would be a considerable cost to the city. Meanwhile, the Berrien County Clerk’s office is seeking a state grant of at least $242,000 to run those early voting days at two sites in the county. One would be in the north, and one in the south. Clerk Sharon Tyler has said the early voting would require 52 election workers spread across the two sites for those nine days. Benton Harbor Commissioners approved the agreement with the county Tuesday with no comment. St. Joseph City Commissioners will consider a similar resolution Wednesday night.
