Minnesota Voting Guide

You only need ID to vote if you have not registered before arriving at the polling precinct. You may register to vote at your polling place on Election Day. ID needed to register to vote at the polling precinct must consist of a combination of one approved photo ID and one approved bill. Photo ID examples include:

• Minnesota driver's license with current name (licenses from out-of-state are not acceptable.)
• Minnesota state ID. (An ID from another state is not acceptable.)
• U.S. Military ID
• U. S. passport
• Minnesota Tribal ID

Examples of bills include:

• Electric bill
• Gas bill
• Water bill
• Sewer bill
• Solid waste bill
• Cable television bill
• Telephone bill
• Rent statement dated within 30 days of election day that itemizes utilities
• Current student bill statement
• A current student fee statement

Please note that the utility bill must have your name, current address, and be due within 30 days of the election.

To verify your voter registration status, use your states resource or contact your county elections office.

You are a Military or Overseas voter if you are in uniformed services, living overseas OR a spouse or dependant of a uniformed services voter. To get registered and vote, you can utilize Overseas Vote Foundation.

If you have filled out your ballot want to use express delivery, you can use the Overseas Vote Foundation's Express Your Vote resource for discounted shipping rates and reliable tracking.

If you have additional questions about elections and voting overseas you can use our state specific elections official directory or contact the Overseas Vote Foundation.

The next election is Tuesday, August 13, 2013 (Primary Election Day). The registration deadline is Wednesday July 17, 2013.

There are several local elections in 2013. To find elections in your area use your state's election calendar.

To find out information about local elections contact your local League of Women Voters or contact your local Board of Elections.

Most polling places are open from 7:00 am to 8:00 pm. Please contact your county auditor or township clerk for details.

You can find your polling place by utilizing your state resource.

If you have further questions on your polling place location, please contact your county clerk.

The voting systems used in Minnesota are optical scan, paper ballots and the hybrid system.

Optical Scan: With this system, you will receive a card or sheet of paper, which you take over to a private table or booth. The card has the names of the various candidates and ballot measures printed on it. With a pen or pencil you fill in a little box or circle or the space between two arrows. When you are finished filling out all the cards, you may bring the cards over to a ballot box, where poll workers will show you how to put the cards in the box. Or in some places, you may feed the completed cards or papers into a computer device that checks your card or paper right there at the polling place to make sure you have voted the way you want to and counts the votes.

Paper Ballots: Paper ballots are one of the oldest ways of voting in America. They are still used in a few places on Election Day. When you come to the polling place, you will get a paper ballot from the poll worker. You take it to the voting booth, and use a pen or pencil to mark a box next to your candidate and issue choices. You then drop the marked ballot into a sealed ballot box.

Direct Recording Electronic (DRE): This is the newest kind of system in use in the U.S. All the information about who and what you are voting for is on an electronic screen like a TV or computer screen.

There are many variations of DREs because lots of companies are inventing new ones, and many cities, counties and states are trying them out. Usually, after you have signed in, the poll workers will give you a card that you slide into a device to start your voting session.

Some of these devices will show all of the candidates and ballot choices on one big screen. Often, with these big screen devices you push a button next to the name of the candidate you want to vote for (or yes or no on a ballot measure). On other DREs, the screen is set up to show pages. On each screen or page, there will probably be one thing to vote on. For example, on one screen or page, you might vote for president. Then you might move to the next page to vote for senator. Often these small-screen devices have a touch screen, where you touch the screen next to the name of the person you want to vote for. Other devices have a key pad. And some have a keyboard, so you can write in the name of someone you want to vote for.

You let the system know you are finished voting by pushing a button, touching the screen or entering something on a keypad.

You can learn more about voting systems by checking out the Elections Assistance Commissions (EAC) resource.

If you need help with voting, you can ask the election judges at the polling place for assistance in reading or marking the ballot. You may also bring someone to help you. All polling places should be fully accessible with clearly marked accessible doors and parking spaces. If you cannot easily leave your car, you can ask for the ballot to be brought out to you. If you are unable to go to the polling place due to an illness or disability, you can vote by absentee ballot. If you have limited vision, you may ask for voter registration and absentee ballot instructions in an alternative format. If you are hearing impaired, every county and most cities will have a TDD device for questions. Materials can be provided in braille, on audio tape, on CD or in large print. To order any brochures or to order a voter registration application and instructions on how to fill it out, contact the secretary of state's elections division at 651-215-1440 or toll free, at 1-877-600-8683. TTY: 1-800-627-3529.

For more information, you can utilize the American Association of People With Disabilities (AAPD) resource.