Which Michigan Towns Have a Marijuana Question, and Does Detroit?

Detroit didn't draw the marijuana question in this check. Six other Michigan towns did.

Mottville Township, the City of Niles, Niles Charter Township, Bad Axe, Menominee, and Big Prairie Township each have a local marijuana question on the Nov 3, 2026 ballot. Detroit and Wayne County didn't turn up a marijuana ordinance question in the same check.

By Jamie, grower at Divine Toke. Divine Toke is Sun+Earth Certified.

Town questions sit in the local section. The statewide page is the statewide ballot post. Your own list is the sample ballot on the Secretary of State elections page.

Which Michigan towns have a marijuana question? #

This check found six: Mottville Township, the City of Niles, Niles Charter Township, Bad Axe, Menominee, and Big Prairie Township.

Election Day is Nov 3, 2026. A local question shows up for voters inside that city or township. It doesn't ride along for the rest of Michigan.

• Mottville Township, St. Joseph County, prohibition ordinance
• City of Niles, retailer cap
• Niles Charter Township, Berrien County, four retail establishments
• City of Bad Axe, Huron County, up to two establishments
• City of Menominee, Menominee County, cap of 13
• Big Prairie Township, Newaygo County, one consumption establishment

Town	Where	What a yes vote adopts
Mottville Township	St. Joseph County	Prohibits marihuana establishments, using the definition at MCL 333.27953(l)
City of Niles	Niles, Mich.	A maximum of 5 marihuana retailers, using MCL 333.27953(q)
Niles Charter Township	Berrien County	4 adult-use retail marihuana establishments, and repeals the township ban only as far as that needs
City of Bad Axe	Huron County	Repeals Ordinance No. 2019-3 and allows up to 2 establishments
City of Menominee	Menominee County	Amends section 11.3 so no more than 13 marihuana retail establishments are allowed
Big Prairie Township	Newaygo County	Not more than 1 adult-use designated consumption establishment, licensed by the CRA

WNDU datelines the city story Niles, Mich. The township copy is the one that prints Berrien County. The city question and the township question are two ballots.

We ship Divine Toke's sun-grown flower by mail from Detroit. These six lines are local ordinances.

Does Detroit have a marijuana question? #

This check found no Detroit or Wayne County marijuana ordinance question.

I didn't open every Wayne city, village, and township file. A different Wayne city can still have its own line. The sample ballot is the check that has your street on it.

A Detroit voter doesn't receive Mottville's question, and Mottville doesn't receive Menominee's cap. The elections page is where you pull the copy for your address. The button on that page is Michigan.gov/Vote, and it opens the voter information center.

How do you check your Michigan sample ballot? #

Open the elections page, then use View sample ballot or Michigan.gov/Vote, and read the section that names your city or township.

The Secretary of State elections page lists the next election as Nov 3, 2026. The same page lists a constitutionally mandated early-voting period of Oct 24 through Nov 1, 2026.

Three steps.

1. Open the elections page and choose View sample ballot, or use the Vote button.
2. Get the ballot for your address, not for a town you drove through.
3. Read the local section that names your city, village, or township.

When does early voting end? #

Early voting on that page runs Oct 24 through Nov 1, 2026, and Election Day is Nov 3.

Mail and online registration for this election ended Oct 19, 2026. The same page says new registrations have to be in person from Oct 20 through Nov 3, 2026. The Bureau of Elections number on that page is 800-292-5973.

What can a Michigan city or township vote on? #

A municipality may prohibit marihuana establishments inside its borders, or limit how many can operate there.

That power is in MCL 333.27956, and the compiled section was rendered Oct 23, 2026. The act spells the plant marihuana. News copy often says marijuana, and the quotes below keep the statute spelling.

MCL 333.27953 says a municipality means a city, a village, or a township. A village can have a question. This check's list is three cities and three townships, and no village turned up on it.

Voters can also force the question. Section 6 says a petition goes to the next regular election when qualified electors sign it in a number greater than 5% of the votes cast for governor in that municipality at the last election for governor. That petition is also subject to section 488 of Michigan election law.

The same statute says a municipality may not adopt an ordinance that restricts transportation of marihuana through the municipality. A shop rule and a through-traffic rule are different sentences in that section.

What's a retailer, a microbusiness, and a provisioning center? #

They're three different licenses, and the Nov 3 questions don't use the words as synonyms.

The compiled definitions were rendered Oct 23, 2026, complete through Public Act 114 of 2026. Open them before you treat a headline's "provisioning center" as the retailer line.

Word on a headline	Statute	What that license is
Marihuana establishment	MCL 333.27953(l)	A grower, a testing lab, a processor, a microbusiness, a retailer, a secure transporter, or another marijuana business the CRA licenses
Marihuana retailer	MCL 333.27953(q)	Buys from establishments and sells to establishments and to adults 21 or older
Marihuana microbusiness	MCL 333.27953(o)	Grows not more than 150 plants, processes and packages, sells to adults 21 or older or to a testing lab, and doesn't sell to other establishments
Provisioning center	MCL 333.27102(w)	A medical license that sells to registered patients, or through their registered caregivers

A retailer buys from other establishments and sells to adults 21 or older and to other establishments. A microbusiness grows its own plants, up to that 150-plant cap, sells to adults or a testing lab, and doesn't sell to other establishments. A provisioning center is the medical license in a different act.

MCL 333.27102 is the medical-facilities act. Subsection (w) defines a provisioning center as a licensee that buys from a grower or processor and sells to registered qualifying patients, directly or through their registered primary caregivers. The compiled copy was rendered Oct 22, 2026.

Mottville's question points at subsection (l), the wide establishment list. The City of Niles question points at subsection (q), the retailer. Keep the subsection letter the ballot prints.

The (l) list, in the order the statute writes it, is:

• marihuana grower
• marihuana safety compliance facility, the testing lab
• marihuana processor
• marihuana microbusiness
• marihuana retailer
• marihuana secure transporter
• any other type of marihuana-related business licensed by the Cannabis Regulatory Agency

What does Mottville Township's question say? #

A yes vote adopts an ordinance that prohibits marihuana establishments inside Mottville Township.

Mottville Township is in St. Joseph County. The Gist copy of the St. Joseph County sample ballot prints this operative line: "Marihuana establishments, as defined by MCL 333.27953(l), are prohibited within the boundaries of Mottville Township." The title on that copy is the Mottville Township Prohibition of Marihuana Establishments Ordinance.

That copy says a yes vote adopts the prohibition ordinance, and a no vote rejects it. It also says the question and the plain-English lines are copied from official election materials. Your clerk's sample ballot is still the copy with your name on it.

Because the question cites subsection (l), a yes vote covers the whole establishment list. Growers, labs, processors, microbusinesses, retailers, and secure transporters all sit inside that definition. The printed question is the prohibition ordinance.

What does the City of Niles question say? #

Use the retailer sentence: a maximum of 5 marijuana retailers in the city.

WNDU on Oct 21, 2026 quotes the ballot this way: "A maximum of five marijuana retailers are permitted in the city. Should this proposed amendment be adopted?" The station's headline talks about provisioning centers. The sentence it quotes says retailers.

The yes campaign prints a code line for section 54-534(a)(1): "a maximum of five marihuana retailers as defined in MCL 333.27953(q) are permitted in the city." That's the same retailer cap, with the statute letter on it. The campaign also says the ballot doesn't rewrite the separate rules for microbusinesses, and that the city's adult-use ordinance separately allows a maximum of 4 microbusinesses.

WSBT on Oct 27, 2026 describes the city vote as a cap on provisioning centers at 5, says a yes vote also allows up to 4 microbusinesses, and says a yes vote blocks a microbusiness from converting into a full dispensary. That story and the campaign don't tell the same story about what a yes vote does to the microbusiness number.

The retailer sentence is the question. Subsection (q) is the adult-use retailer, subsection (o) is the microbusiness, and the medical act's provisioning center is a third license. Buying lunch in the city doesn't put the township question on your ballot.

What do the other four towns ask? #

Niles Charter Township, Bad Axe, Menominee, and Big Prairie each have a separate line.

What does Niles Charter Township ask? #

A yes vote allows 4 adult-use retail marihuana establishments and repeals the township ban only as far as that ordinance needs.

Niles Charter Township is in Berrien County, and the City of Niles is a separate government. VoterDecoder's copy of the question says 4 adult-use retail marihuana establishments may operate in the township at any one time. It also says the Niles Charter Township Prohibition of Marijuana Establishment Ordinance would be amended or repealed only to the extent necessary. WSBT's Oct 27 story also reports a question in this township. The wording in this section is that copied ordinance.

What does Bad Axe ask? #

A yes vote repeals the 2019 ban and allows up to 2 establishments.

Bad Axe is in Huron County. The Gist copy of the Huron County sample ballot prints this question: "Shall the City of Bad Axe repeal Ordinance No. 2019-3 which prohibits marihuana establishments and instead allow up to two such establishments to operate in the City in accordance with the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marihuana Act." That copy says a yes vote repeals the 2019 ban and allows up to 2, and a no vote keeps the ban. The Huron County sample-ballot copy is the Bad Axe wording.

What does Menominee ask? #

The ballot sentence sets the cap at 13 marihuana retail establishments.

The VoterDecoder copy asks voters to amend section 11.3 of the Menominee Code of Ordinances so that no more than 13 marihuana retail establishments are allowed inside the city limits. WLUC on Sep 22, 2026 reported that the city cap is 9 and that a yes vote would raise it to 13. That 9 is a September report. It isn't a number that broke this week. The number in the ballot sentence is 13.

What does Big Prairie Township ask? #

A yes vote would allow not more than 1 adult-use designated consumption establishment, licensed by the CRA.

Big Prairie Township is in Newaygo County. The Gist copy of the Newaygo County sample ballot says the proposal would amend Ordinance No. 2022-004, adopted June 14, 2022, to authorize, on top of the other marijuana establishments that ordinance already allows, not more than 1 adult-use designated marijuana consumption establishment at a time. The establishment has to be licensed by the Michigan Cannabis Regulatory Agency. The state rules for that consumption license are in the Detroit consumption-lounge post.

MCL 333.27956 also lets a municipality authorize sale for consumption in designated areas that aren't open to people under 21. Big Prairie's printed question asks voters to allow one CRA-licensed consumption establishment.

FAQ #

Are the City of Niles and Niles Charter Township the same ballot? #

No. They're different governments, and each has its own question. The city line is the 5-retailer cap quoted by WNDU. The township line, in the VoterDecoder copy, allows 4 adult-use retail marihuana establishments. Your address picks one of those ballots.

Does the printed Niles city question say provisioning center? #

No. The quoted ballot sentence says marijuana retailers. WNDU's Oct 21 headline uses provisioning centers, and the story still quotes the retailer sentence. WSBT on Oct 27 uses provisioning centers again. The yes campaign's code line cites marihuana retailers in MCL 333.27953(q).

Does Menominee's ballot print a cap of 9? #

No. The ballot sentence sets the cap at 13. WLUC reported the old cap of 9 on Sep 22, 2026, and said the vote would raise it. The VoterDecoder copy of the question prints 13.

Can a Michigan village put marijuana shops to a vote? #

Yes. The statute's municipality definition includes a village. MCL 333.27953 says a municipality is a city, a village, or a township. No village question turned up in this check. If you live in a village, the sample ballot is still the list for your address.

Does a local establishment ordinance replace the personal-use section? #

No. Section 6 is the ordinance power, and section 5 is the personal-use section of the same act. A yes vote adopts the local ordinance printed for that town. MCL 333.27955 is where the personal-use rules sit.

What if I live in Wayne County, outside Detroit? #

Pull your sample ballot, because this check didn't find a Wayne County marijuana ordinance question. It also didn't find one for Detroit. Another city in the county can still have a line of its own.

Does every Michigan voter see these six questions? #

No. A local question is on the ballot in that municipality. A Detroit voter doesn't get Bad Axe's repeal, and a Bad Axe voter doesn't get Big Prairie's consumption question. Six towns came up in this check. Your precinct can still differ.

What petition count puts a local marijuana ordinance on the ballot? #

The statute's count is greater than 5% of the votes cast for governor in that municipality. MCL 333.27956 measures that percent against the last election for governor there. Then the question goes on the next regular election ballot.

Does Big Prairie's question add a retailer? #

No. It adds one consumption establishment on top of establishments the township ordinance already allows. The license name on the ballot is an adult-use designated marijuana consumption establishment, licensed by the CRA. Subsection (q) is the retailer definition, and this question doesn't cite it. State rules for that consumption license are in the consumption-lounge post.

Can a town ban marijuana from moving through on the road? #

No. The statute bars an ordinance that restricts transportation through the municipality. That's in MCL 333.27956, the same section that lets a city or township prohibit or cap establishments. Shops inside the borders and loads passing through are different sentences in that section.

If your town isn't on the list #

The sample ballot is the copy with your street on it.

These six are the local marijuana questions this check found in ballot copies and reporting dated on or before Oct 29, 2026. Detroit wasn't among them. This is not legal advice.

Open the elections page before you guess your city matches a headline.