Owosso tests its vote counters Oct. 13 before Nov. 3 election

Owosso will run its election tabulators through a public test at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 13, in the conference room at Owosso City Hall, 301 West Main Street, ahead of the Nov. 3 general election.

The city posted the notice Wednesday. It says the test is scheduled for the November 3, 2026 gubernatorial election and is conducted "to determine that the program and the computers being used to tabulate the results of the election, count the votes in the manner prescribed by the law."

In plain terms: before your ballot is fed into a machine on Election Day, clerks run a set of pre-marked test ballots through the same equipment and check that the totals the machine reports match the totals they know are correct. Michigan requires the test be advertised and open so anyone can watch it happen.

The notice does not say how many tabulators the city will test, how long the test is expected to take, or whether residents who attend may inspect the equipment. It also does not list what will be on the Nov. 3 ballot in Owosso.

City Hall is the same building where Owosso's council meetings are held, and where the council has a pair of public hearings scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Oct. 5 — one on banning camping on city-owned property, one on a single-hauler garbage ordinance. The Current reported both notices on Sept. 24; the city has not yet answered basic questions about either, including what a single-hauler contract would cost a household.

What happens next: The public accuracy test takes place at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 13, at 301 West Main Street. The general election follows on Tuesday, Nov. 3. We have asked the city clerk's office what equipment will be tested and will report what we learn.