Ballot Measures in Saline and Dexter Township pass, Augusta Township Rejected

Michigan’s first February Presidential Primary results are in for Washtenaw County. Though county voter turnout was low at only 24%, important decisions were made on ballot issues for voters in the City of Saline and Dexter and Augusta Townships.

Voters in Saline approved both ballot measures in their district. Proposal A asked voters to approve an amendment to their charter allowing the city to post the required meeting notices on the city’s website and other appropriate locations that comply with state and federal law, rather than in a printed publication. That measure also included approval to update the charter language to make all references gender-neutral. The vote tally was 77% in favor and 23% opposed.

Proposal B asked voters to approve a second amendment to the city’s charter that would change the way the city determines the first city council meeting of a new calendar year, ensuring it can no longer fall on the New Year’s Day federal holiday. The vote tally for this measure was 84% in favor and 16% opposed.

Voter turnout for Saline was 29%, a 5% increase over the overall voter turnout for Washtenaw County. In what was the first election to include early voting in Michigan, fewer than 100 people in Saline voted early. However, there were more absentee ballots cast in Saline than there were Election Day votes.

Voters in Dexter Township also approved both ballot measures under consideration in their district. The ballot language asked voters whether or not to renew the Police Services Millage and the Fire and Emergency Services Millage which were both last approved by voters in 2018.

The Fire and Emergency Services renewal passed with 85% in favor of approval and 15% opposed. The Police Services renewal passed with a slightly lower margin of 81% in favor and 19% opposed. Voter turnout in Dexter Township was substantially higher than in Washtenaw County overall, with 36% of registered township voters casting a ballot. The majority of ballots cast in Dexter Township were absentee, followed by votes collected on Election Day. Fewer than 100 Dexter Township voters took advantage of early voting.

The voters in August Township were asked to consider whether or not to rezone a 33-acre property from agricultural to multi-family residential. Voters in that district overwhelmingly rejected that rezoning, with 71% of voters opposed and 29% in favor. The majority of votes in Augusta were cast on Election Day, followed by absentee ballots. Fewer than 50 people cast early, in-person ballots.

All election results for Washtenaw County can be found on Washtenaw County’s website.