"Ope, I Voted" Stickers Are Sweeping Michigan — What Does It Mean?

The U.S. general election commenced on Tuesday, Nov. 5, marking the final day registered or first-time voters can make their voices heard at the polls.

As tense as election time can be, many look forward to the moment they can post their "I Voted" stickers online. This year, Michigan added its midwestern flair to the phrase.

To commemorate Election Day 2024, the State of Michigan held a sticker contest featuring several designs for residents to choose from after casting their vote. Multiple residents from various cities posted creative "I Voted" stickers. Many of the stickers were designed with bright colors and bold cartoons of cats, fish, and deer. The state's website also shared a submission from Breanna Tanner of a purple and magenta sticker, including the popular Michigander phrase, "Ope."

"Ope, I Voted," the sticker simply read.

The creative sticker was an obvious play on "Ope's" popularity in Michigan and, in recent years, nationally. Dictionary.com defines the phrase as "an interjection used to express surprise or to alert someone" (though it can also be something you say to apologize for squeezing past someone real quick).

In addition to Michigan, midwestern states such as Ohio and Wisconsin. In pop culture, music fans discovered that Eminem used a phrase in his 2003 song, "Lose Yourself," when he rapped, "Snap back to reality, ope there goes gravity." As it was used on the sticker, the word stressed the rapper's shock.

Eight other Michigan artists won the voting sticker contest in addition to the "Ope, I Voted" sticker. Several voters selected more than one sticker based on their feelings about the designs, but one woman shared why the "ope" one stood out the most.

"I chose the ‘Ope I voted’ (sticker) because ‘ope’ is very Michigan, and I love saying it," a woman named Serena Chapman told Wavy on Nov. 5.