A local citizens group called Let East Lansing Vote is collecting signatures for its 2026 petition drive to revise the East Lansing city charter, requiring City Council elections to take place during even years.
According to the Let East Lansing Vote website, as it currently stands, the only offices regularly elected during odd years are members of the City Council, causing low voter representation and turnout.
The group, co-founded by Michigan State University professors in the Department of Political Science, Sarah Rechow, Liam Richichi, Nazita Lajevardi and Adam Delay, officially organized in spring 2026 and is out collecting signatures now.
They are required to collect signatures from 5% of registered voters in East Lansing and submit them to the city clerk by July 28, 2026.
If they meet the mark, the petition goes on the ballot for the November election, where East Lansing voters will decide if they want to adopt the charter revision to have even-year city council elections.
If the petition passes, the revision would be implemented by the city council. This would move the next city council election from 2027 to 2028.
While there has been previous political science research done about disparities in voter turnout when elections take place in odd years, Rechow and her fellow co-founders have collected data about the disparities in East Lansing specifically.
On average, there was approximately 35% less voter turnout between the East Lansing 2024 general election and the 2025 local election across all age groups. With almost 45% less voter turnout for voters in their 20s and 30s, according to the Let East Lansing Vote website.
Richichi, an MSU alum and current Chair of the 7th Congressional District Democratic Party, said one of the common misconceptions from the potential pushback for this initiative stems from the concern that this is only to get students on and off campus to vote.
However, the group emphasizes that in a time of voter disenfranchisement in the form of legislation like the Save Act, their initiative is in favor of democracy, broad civic engagement and ensuring every demographic in East Lansing is represented.
