Tomorrow is the day of the Michigan presidential primary. For an in-depth Q&A about the election – which covers everything from names on the ballots, to polling locations, the need for photo ID, etc. – be sure to check out this post from Michigan Messenger. While the Democratic primary is by all accounts more confusing this year, Kevin Shopshire does a nice job of clearing up any misconceptions about who is and who is not on the ballot.

The Trust Fund is neutral in this election, as all others, however we'd like to take a moment to point our readers back to a post we wrote in September of last year, "Put affordable housing into the election":

Affordable housing is literally the foundation of the American economy. While all levels of government are constantly preoccupied with short-term budgetary issues, the ability of consumers to afford a home is something that affects all other aspects of economic activity. This is not an issue that we can simply ignore.

If you get a chance, go read the whole editorial. It's great to see that an important paper like the Star Tribune in Minneapolis-St. Paul (which is playing host to the 2008 Republican National Convention) is putting this issue front and center. Hopefully we'll see affordable housing get the attention it deserves over the next fourteen months, but you're an important part of making sure that happens.

On the campaign trail next year, be sure to ask political candidates and the local, state, and federal levels what their plan is for affordable housing.

Without turning this blog into a forum for media criticism today, we'll just say that reporters have been much more concerned with the horse race aspect of the election rather than letting the candidates debate substantive issues this year. Which is to say that affordable housing really hasn't gotten the attention it deserves so far.

Michigan voters clearly won't get much of a chance to interact with the presidential candidates of either party this year – particularly the Democrats, who have mostly pledged not to campaign here. While that is unfortunate, there is still time to make affordable housing and economic development issues a factor in this year's local, state and federal elections. To learn more about candidates' positions on the issues, visit the nonpartisan website, Project Vote Smart.

In the meantime, happy voting!