FLINT TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — Michigan voters can start casting an absentee ballot without giving a reason.

Thursday was the first day residents can request to vote by mail in the May election. It is the first election since voters last fall approved no-reason absentee voting as part of a ballot initiative.

Previously, absentee voters had to be at least 60 years old, be out of town when the polls are open or be unable to vote on Election Day due to a physical disability, religious tenets or incarceration.

Requests for an absent voter ballot can be submitted in writing to the local city or township clerk.

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and Flint Township Clerk Kathy Funk held a news conference Thursday to welcome the new era of no-reason absentee voting.