Whitmer: ‘I’m Going to Take a Look’ at Making Election Day a Holiday

During Monday’s broadcast of SiriusXM’s “The Joe Madison Show,” Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI) said she was going to “look” at declaring Election Day a state holiday in Michigan, as her state is in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

Madison asked, “The governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia, he made election day a state holiday. Could you consider, or would you consider doing the same in Michigan? I know there are economic concerns when you declare a state holiday. Has there been any discussion of doing something similar in Michigan?”

Whitmer said, “Yeah, you know I’m going to take a look at it. I have the complication of a legislature that doesn’t see eye-to-eye with me on making it easier for people to vote. I’ve got a very Republican legislature, and that is just a realty as we are trying to navigate how to do make it — how do we level additional barriers for Michigander to cast their ballot?”

She added, “But I do think that that is a smart move that Gov. Northam made, and if there was a way to replicate something of that nature here, that’s always something I’d be interested in doing.”

Follow Pam Key on Twitter @pamkeyNEN