Registering voters in Minnesota

[dflprincess]

I found this in my email today. Note that Mary Kiffmeyer is apparently playing some games with voter registration. The person who sent this is in the 5th Congressional (Sabo's) District I don't know Kiffmeyer's game playing applies to heavily Democratic areas or is she's discouraging new registrants in all districts. Remember, she would like to do away with Minnesota's same day registrain.

Since many volunteers are helping register new voters, and I have been hearing some disturbing anecdotes about how the new registrations are being processed, let me share with you a few tips if you are registering to vote or are helping register others to vote:

1. The Secretary of State is not our friend, and has been rejecting applications for any available reason. If possible, you should avoid the Secretary of State's office, and instead register through the county auditor. For Hennepin County, the Elections department (which performs the County Auditor's duties with respect to elections in Hennepin County) is located at A600 Government Center, 300 South Sixth Street, Minneapolis. Most mail-in voter-registration applications are preprinted with the Secretary of State's address, but Hennepin County Elections has applications pre-addressed to them (they have pasted over the Secretary of State's address with their own mailing label), and you can pick up blank applications at their office. You can also download blank forms at http://www.co.hennepin.mn.us/vgn/images/portal/cit_100003616/19/40/106167828MNVRCard.pdf. Even if an application is pre-addressed to the Secretary of State, you can mail or deliver it to Hennepin County Elections, and they can process it -- so it's better if you collect an application that is pre-addressed to the Secretary of State, and mail or deliver it to Hennepin County Elections, than if you leave it to the voter to mail in to the Secretary of State.

2. If you collect another voter's application, you must submit it to the county auditor (or the Secretary of State -- but like I said, please make it the county auditor) within 10 days after the applicant signs the application. See Minnesota Statutes § 201.061, subd. 1.

3. The Secretary of State has been taking the view that an applicant must include a photocopy of his or her driver's license or identification card with the application. According to the law, that view is incorrect -- the registrant need only provide a driver's license or identification card number. (See http://www.sos.state.mn.us/election/MNVRCard.pdf.) But I have been hearing anecdotes that the Secretary of State's office has been rejecting applications for failing to send in a photocopy, which the law doesn't require. (She even complained to the United States Attorney that the Hennepin County Elections department, which was not enforcing her imaginary requirement, was thereby breaking the Help America Vote Act. The Department of Justice rejected her argument.)

4. Pre-registration closes on the 21st day before an election -- so that's Tuesday 18 August for the primary election on Tuesday 14 September, and Tuesday 12 October for the general election on Tuesday 2 November. (These dates assume that the Bush administration isn't successful in its attempts at postponing the election. See CNN.com, "Officials discuss how to delay Election Day," http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/07/11/election.day.delay/index.html.) You can still register to vote at the polls, the same way that we have always done it, by bringing proof of residence or by being vouched for by a registered voter. You can also register in person at the county auditor's office (or the Secretary of State's) during business hours during the 20 days leading up to the election.

5. Theoretically, if a registration is defective, the county auditor is supposed to notify the applicant so that he or she can correct the application. Minnesota Statutes § 201.061, subd. 1a. But practically, that notification may not happen, or may not happen in a timely manner. If you want to check on whether a registration has been successful, you can visit the county auditor's office and inspect the pre-registration list. Otherwise, you may want to tell anyone that you helped register that they should bring proof of residence with them to the polls, just in case.

6. You can find more information about voter registration, and elections, online at Hennepin County Elections (http://www.co.hennepin.mn.us/vgn/portal/internet/hcdetailmaster/0,2300,1273_1760_100181528,00.html) or the Secretary of State's office (http://www.sos.state.mn.us/election/faq.html). Despite the Secretary of State's practices being questionable, her website is quite good, and the information posted there is reliable.

[Supormom]

1. Thank you DFL Princess

This is a very informative post and I have sent these suggestions to a number of people I know who are actively involved in registering new voters.

[ButterflyBlood]

2. That reminds me, I need to change my address

luckily I'm already registered. I'll change it tommorow. While I dont' have a Minnesota driver's license, I do have other forms of ID.