Minnesota: GOP dogs Secretary of State on online voter registration even though he’s a lame duck | MPRN

Democratic Secretary of State Mark Ritchie won’t be seeking re-election next year, but that hasn’t slowed the Republican criticism that has dogged him through two terms. Republican lawmakers have been pounding Ritchie for developing an online voter registration system, without first obtaining legislative approval. Among them is state Sen. Mary Kiffmeyer, R-Big Lake, who is considering another run for the secretary of state job she once held. Kiffmeyer lost her bid for a third term as secretary of state to Ritchie in 2006. “Doing anything online has a risk with it, and especially something like this, and I just want to be sure,” Kiffmeyer said. “My concerns are it hasn’t gone through the legislative process. It has not been vetted by our state IT department, nor the expertise that we have. It’s been done on a unilateral basis.” She and other Republicans want the Senate Subcommittee on Elections to hold a hearing to address their concerns.

Minnesota: New online voter system challenged | Star Tribune

Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie launched an online voter registration system last month with little fanfare, but now the state’s legislative auditor is underscoring lawmakers’ questions about whether he had any authority to do so. Ritchie created the system without explicit permission from the Legislature. A nonpartisan analysis, which Legislative Auditor James Nobles highlighted on Thursday, said the secretary of state could have followed the lead of top election officials in other states and asked for lawmakers’ approval before creating the online system. “We wouldn’t have the controversy if he had,” Nobles said. The wrangling over the online registration system is the latest clash between the DFL secretary of state and the GOP. Last year, Republican lawmakers questioned whether Ritchie used his office to campaign against the amendment to require a photo ID for voting. In another incident, the Minnesota Supreme Court decided Ritchie overstepped his bounds when he tried to write new titles for constitutional amendments.

Minnesota: State gets ready for electronic voting roster test run as officials examine costs, benefits | Star Tribune

Voters who show up at some Minnesota polling places next month will encounter sign-in stations equipped with iPads or bar code scanners as part of an experiment designed to test whether more technology would cut wait times, save money and inspire more confidence in the election process. The electronic roster, or e-poll book, pilot project will take place in fewer than 10 cities and counties, but the results are being closely monitored by election officials across the state because lawmakers could broaden the technology’s use — if the price is right. On that score, a task force of lawmakers, elections administrators and others watching over the project met Wednesday to discuss programming challenges, hardware costs and data security. “We’re not rushing into this,” said Secretary of State Mark Ritchie, the state’s chief elections official. The rosters are an alternative to paper sign-in sheets at precincts. They contain the same type of information: registration data, an indication if someone already voted or has had a challenged registration status.

Minnesota: GOP leaders call for probe of new online voter registration tool | Politics in Minnesota

Top Republican leaders want the state’s legislative auditor to examine a move from Secretary of State Mark Ritchie to allow online voter registration in Minnesota. In a letter sent to Legislative Auditor Jim Nobles‘ office on Monday, GOP minority leaders Kurt Daudt and David Hann, along with Republican election committee leads Rep. Tim Sanders and Sen. Scott Newman, said Ritchie “unilaterally” started the program without vetting the proposal in committee hearings. The program allows new voters to register online or returning voters to update their information.

Minnesota: Online voter registration offered in Minnesota | StarTribune.com

Minnesotans can now go online to register to vote, update their current registration or apply for overseas absentee ballots, the Secretary of State’s office said. The website is mnvotes.org. “Today we join many states that have already demonstrated that online registration is secure and that it saves taxpayers money,” said Secretary of State Mark Ritchie in a statement. He said online registration will supplement but not replace paper applications. His office said the system “was built to ensure that only persons providing verifiable identification numbers will be able to register,” and these applications will undergo the same verification process as paper applications. Minnesota is the 15th state to offer online registration, Ritchie’s office said. On Nov. 5, more than 35 municipalities and 113 school districts hold elections. Online registrations will be accepted through Oct. 15, and unregistered voters may continue to register at their polling places on Election Day.

Minnesota: Voter ID debate could resurface with task force study | Minnesota Public Radio News

A photo identification requirement to vote in Minnesota is a contentious issue that could again surface as a newly-formed state task force launches a study of electronic poll book technology. Part of the research will look at the use of photographs as a way to verify voter eligibility. Last fall, Minnesota voters turned down a Republican-backed proposed constitutional amendment to require photo identification at election polls. The task force meets for the first time Tuesday. Electronic poll books are a computer-based alternative to the paper rosters that voters currently sign their name to at polling places on Election Day. Instead of signing in, a voter’s driver’s license or some other identification is swiped by a card reader, and their pre-loaded information is displayed on a computer monitor. The city of Minnetonka tested such technology in recent elections and City Clerk David Maeda said he was pleased with the results.

Minnesota: Faster, more reliable voting machines coming in Minneapolis area | Star Tribune

Faster, more reliable voting machines are arriving just in time to help handle an expansion of absentee voting in Minnesota and a high-profile test of Minneapolis’ ranked-choice voting in this fall’s mayoral election. Six of the seven metro-area counties are spending millions to replace hundreds of 13-year-old optical-scan ballot-counting machines, taking advantage of federal grants and the recent certification of new voting technology. Ballots cast by Minneapolis residents will be fed into the machines during the mayoral election in November, which will be the most high-profile test yet of the city’s system that allows voters to pick a first, second and third choice. The new equipment will eliminate the hand counting that took 15 days in 2009.

Minnesota: Supreme Court election ruling’s effect could be far-reaching | Star Tribune

While much of the attention last week was focused on U.S. Supreme Court decisions on gay marriage, election geeks in Minnesota were pondering the “other” bombshell dropped by the court. That case, Shelby County v. Holder, carries echoes of the civil rights movement, a time when advocates of “states’ rights” battled federal intervention. In a 5-4 ruling, the court’s conservative majority declared unconstitutional a pillar of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Then, as now, it was the South (Shelby County, Alabama) vs. the feds (U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder.) But this time, it was the South’s success in attracting minority voters, and not old schemes for keeping black voters away, that carried the day. Minnesota and most northern and western states were not directly affected by the ruling, but the touchy issue of voting and civil rights strikes a chord everywhere.

Minnesota: Anoka County getting new election equipment | ABC Newspapers

The Anoka County Board has awarded a contract for new election equipment that will be in place in time for the 2013 election Nov. 5. The new equipment plus election services from Election Systems & Software will cost up to $1,530,251.30 and replace the existing equipment, which is obsolete. A 10-year joint powers agreement was approved last year by the county, school districts and cities in the county that spells out a cost-sharing formula to pay for the new equipment, its maintenance and operations. According to Cindy Reichert, Anoka County elections manager, the software associated with the new equipment will begin arriving the week of June 24. But delivery of the 140 ballot counters that the county is purchasing under the contract won’t be delivered until August, Reichert said.

Minnesota: Most states have both early and no-excuse absentee balloting, but not Minnesota | MinnPost

Absentee balloting has made voting much easier for Bea Arret over the last decade. Arret, an election judge for 35 years, is deeply immersed in the civic side of voting and in encouraging others to vote. The engaged 84-year-old, who resides in a Moorhead-area assisted-living facility, said she encourages her fellow residents to cast absentee ballots to make sure it’s easy for them to participate in elections. “It’s just so much more convenient,” she said. “I just encourage everybody else to do the same thing.” That’s why Arret, who worked with AARP against the voting constitutional amendment last fall, is thrilled with upcoming changes in state election practices.

Minnesota: Ranked Choice Voting looms large as Minneapolis Democrats fail to endorse mayoral candidate | Twin Cities Daily Planet

A contentious, 12-hour convention Saturday failed to endorse a DFL candidate for Mayor of Minneapolis, increasing the significance of the role that Ranked Choice Voting will play in the November 5 election and giving a crowded field of candidates more room for maneuver. More than 1,400 delegates attended the all-day convention which — like all but one of the previous three such events — did not succeed at giving the party’s endorsement to one candidate. The convention dissipated in confusion after four ballots when supporters of progressive candidate Betsy Hodges left the Minneapolis Convention Center, joined by supporters of fellow progressive candidate Gary Schiff. Schiff had withdrawn his name from contention after the second ballot and urged his supporters to join forces with Hodges. The joint tactics by the two City Council members were aimed at blocking an endorsement for former Hennepin County Commissioner Mark Andrew, who was the favorite of many “old-guard” DFLers and came the closest to winning the 60-percent support necessary for endorsement.

Minnesota: Minneapolis voting: More poll workers, better voter education planned | MPRN

City elections officials want to make this fall’s election go more smoothly than in past years. Plans announced on Wednesday focus on shortening wait times at Minneapolis polling places, increasing voter education efforts and reducing the amount of time it will take to count the cast ballots. Last November, in a presidential election year, voters faced long lines at several city polling places. Some voters waited in line only to find out they were in the wrong place after some precinct boundaries were redrawn. More poll workers this fall will be assigned to each site, Assistant city clerk Grace Wachlarowicz said. She said the presence of additional staff will give judges more time to concentrate on their primary duties. “This will give them an opportunity to focus strictly on poll management, assist voters where they need to, answer questions, manage the lines. That will be their sole responsibility — is management,” Wachlarowicz said.

Minnesota: Mark Ritchie won’t seek re-election in 2014 | Pioneer Press

Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie announced Tuesday that he will not seek re-election to a third term in 2014. “This is the right decision for me and my family right now,” said Ritchie, 61. “When I did the math, if I would be honored by being re-elected, I would be closer to 70 than 65” after completing another term. He hasn’t decided what he wants to do after leaving office. “My public service will take a different form. I don’t know what it will be, but it won’t be as Minnesota’s next secretary of state. That will be for a new generation of leadership.” Vacancies in state constitutional offices are rare, and the announcement by Ritchie, a Democrat, is likely to set off a stampede of ambitious candidates for his post.

Minnesota: Some Council members getting cold feet over proposed Minneapolis ranked-choice changes | MinnPost

Changes to election laws are almost always explained by saying the new rules will give voters more opportunities to participate. The flip side of the new rules, especially those made by a group of candidates during an election year, might be seen as giving those running for office a few extra opportunities of their own. That’s the crux of the discussion involving the Minneapolis City Council, where some of the members want to give voters the chance to rank more than three candidates for each office in the fall election. And several council members are questioning the ethics of candidates making changes to the election laws. “I think it’s almost to the point of making me feel uncomfortable, and it’s distasteful that we are voting on a ballot we are going to be on,” said Council Member Lisa Goodman at Thursday’s meeting.

Minnesota: Ranked choice, but how many? | StarTribune.com

Voters in Minneapolis will have their second opportunity this November to rank candidates based on preference. But how many rankings should they get? The current number is three, but a City Council committee on Thursday took testimony about the implications of increasing it to five or more. The discussion initially arose during an elections committee meeting earlier this week focused on some technical changes to the ranked choice voting process and interpretations of voter intent. Ranked choice voting, which the city used during a less contentious election in 2009, takes into account voters’ rankings to choose a winner if a candidate does not get more than 50 percent of the first-choice votes. The candidate with the fewest first-choice votes is eliminated after each round – and their supporters’ votes are redistributed based on their rankings – until someone surpasses 50 percent.

Minnesota: Tweaking ranked-choice voting: Minneapolis considering three changes | MinnPost

Members of the Minneapolis City Council got scolded by a member of the Charter Commission as they prepared to change some of the rules on how ranked-choice voting will be administered in this fall’s election. “I would submit that 13 declared candidates for office, in an election year, five months prior to an election, have no business changing election laws,” said Devin Rice of the Charter Commission. He also was critical of an earlier council decision to reduce funds available for voter education, given the incidence of voter error in the 2009 election. Errors in using ranked-choice voting showed up on 6.5 percent of ballots cast, Rice said.

Minnesota: State could conduct pilot of electronic voter registration system under omnibus elections bill passed by House | Twin Cities Daily Planet

A trial run of electronic rosters included in the omnibus elections bill could be the first step toward a new voter registration verification system. Passed by the House 74-60 Wednesday, HF894, sponsored by Rep. Steve Simon (DFL-Hopkins), includes other election reforms that would allow residents to vote absentee without an excuse and reduce the number of individuals someone can vouch for as a valid resident on Election Day from 15 to eight. The bill now moves to the Senate where Sen. Katie Sieben (DFL-Newport) is the sponsor. “This bill moves Minnesota closer to joining the majority of other states which already offer their voters the increasingly exercised option of voting absentee without needing to provide an excuse,” Secretary of State Mark Ritchie said in a statement.

Minnesota: State House passes elections bill | Minnesota Public Radio

The Minnesota House passed an omnibus elections bill today that would allow eligible voters to cast absentee ballots without stating a reason for not voting in person on Election Day. The vote was 74-60, with only one two Republican joining Democrats on the prevailing side. That doesn’t appear to meet the “broad bipartisan support” standard that DFL Gov. Mark Dayton has said he’ll require to sign election law changes. In addition to no-excuse absentee voting, the bill includes higher thresholds for taxpayer-funded recounts, tighter controls over felon voting rights and a reduction in Election Day vouching. There’s also a change in way statewide elections would proceed if a majority candidate dies or is incapacitated.

Minnesota: Election bills take shape in House, Senate | The Princeton Union-Eagle

Both House and Senate omnibus elections bills have hit the House and Senate floors and are open for what promises to be some lively debate. House File 894 is authored by Steve Simon, DFL-Hopkins. Senate File 677 is authored by Sen. Katie Sieben, DFL-Newport. Sieben is also the assistant majority leader in the Senate. Both Simon and Sieben said bipartisan efforts led to the bills speedily going to their respective floors. They are both very aware that Gov. Mark Dayton has said he will only sign an elections bill that is bipartisan. Both expect their bills to be discussed on the floor late next week or the following week.

Minnesota: Early voting measure heads to House floor | Minnesota Public Radio

A measure that would allow Minnesotans to vote early is headed to the floor of the Minnesota House, but it doesn’t appear to be getting the bipartisan support that DFL Gov. Mark Dayton has said is needed for election law changes. The House Ways and Means Committee advanced the bill today by a vote of 15-12, with all Republicans opposed. The bill allows voters to cast their ballots at centralized polling places during a specified period before Election Day.

Minnesota: Secretary of State Ritchie supports election law changes | St. Peter News

With the next Minnesota gubernatorial election still more than a year away, Secretary of State Mark Ritchie is traveling the state to talk about proposed election law changes, backing several that he says will lower costs and increase turnout. On Monday, he stopped by the St. Peter Herald to talk about several pieces of proposed legislation and which ones he is supporting. Part of large omnibus bills passing through the Legislature, the proposed changes are intended to make things easier on county auditors and officials who currently find themselves struggling to hold efficient elections.  “I went around the state, Mankato, Duluth, everywhere and met with election judges, county auditors, city clerks, all the people who run our elections to get their ideas, get their feedback, find out how did it go and what can we do better,” Ritchie said. “I heard the same themes, more or less, in all different parts of the state.”

Minnesota: Ritchie Discusses Proposed Voting Legislation | KEYC

Proposed legislation in St. Paul could change how you vote. Proposed legislation going through the state talks about expanding voting options in the hopes of making the process more flexible. “Last year of course we had the state’s largest election ever.  We were again first in the nation, it was very great, very smooth election, but also lots of ideas came forth and so people met around the state, down in Mankato, everywhere, and talking about some things that can make it even better and also cut some of the costs,” says Secretary of State Mark Ritchie. The ‘No Excuse Absentee Balloting’ bill proposes that Minnesotans could cast an absentee ballot without providing one of the five excuses currently allowed.  Those reasons are: absence from your precinct, illness or disability, serving as an election judge in another precinct, religious discipline or observance of religious holiday, and any emergency declared by the governor or quarantine declared by the federal or state government.

Minnesota: Voter fraud case over for 86-year-old St. Peter woman | Makato Free Press

An 86-year-old St. Peter woman’s criminal case of voter fraud was resolved without her having to appear in court Tuesday morning. Margaret Schneider will not have to pay a fine, spend time in jail or serve probation under an agreement approved in Nicollet County District Court. Instead the only requirement is that she obey voting laws. Schneider was charged with voter fraud, a felony, in March. She mistakenly voted with an absentee ballot on July 13 and again at her polling place Aug. 14. Schneider, who has Parkinson’s disease and suffers from dementia, said she forgot she had voted.

Minnesota: Clerk looks for ‘Plan B’ to fund Minneapolis election | Minnesota Public Radio

A request to boost the budget for this year’s Minneapolis election has received a thumbs-down from the city’s finance department. The City Clerk’s office says it needs an extra $385,000 to run the election, which combines the relatively new ranked-choice voting system with a red-hot mayor’s race. The clerk proposed using unspent money left over from last year’s budget to pay for the added expense. But a list of Finance Department recommendations for allocating those rollover dollars contains no mention of the election request.

Minnesota: DFLers contol Minnesota Capitol but election overhaul ideas need GOP support | StarTribune.com

DFL Gov. Mark Dayton has given Republicans virtual veto power over changes to Minnesota’s election laws, which could doom Democratic proposals to advance early voting. Although Democrats control the Legislature and have offered support for early voting, the governor of their own party has pledged not to sign any election measure that lacks “broad bipartisan support.” So far, Republicans have been cool to the idea of letting voters go to polling places before Election Day. “Any changes in election laws need broad bipartisan support so, to be honest, I haven’t looked into the details of each of the proposals yet because I’m waiting to see if anything is going to move forward on that basis,” Dayton said this week. “If it has that bipartisan support, that’s a pretty good indicator that it is good for Minnesota, good for election participation and protects the integrity, both of which are laudable goals,” he said, explaining the standard he has held since he took office. That is an unusual dictum at a time when election procedures have become sharply partisan, bringing political parties repeatedly to courts around the country to fight out who, when and how people can vote.

Minnesota: Bill would allow no-excuse absentee voting, limit vouching | Minnesota Public Radio

A Minnesota House panel has advanced a batch of election law changes that for now has some bipartisan support. The bill includes no-excuse absentee voting, higher thresholds for triggering taxpayer-funded recounts, tighter controls over felon voting rights and a reduction in Election Day vouching. It would allow one voter to vouch for a maximum of eight people, down from the current limit of 15. The bill also links the state’s electoral votes for president to the national popular vote winner. The House Elections Committee approved the omnibus bill today on a mostly favorable voice vote, sending it on to the Government Operations Committee.

Minnesota: Minnesota woman, 86, charged with voter fraud | TwinCities.com

Margaret Schneider will tell you life hasn’t been easy lately. She uses a walker to get around her small St. Peter apartment, can’t stand for long periods of time and readily admits she’s a victim of senior moments. Schneider, 86, has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and dementia is one of her symptoms. She’s also easily stressed, which became apparent while she discussed with The Free Press the letter she received recently from the Nicollet County Attorney’s Office. It told her she’s been charged with a felony for voting twice during the 2012 primary election. Schneider doesn’t deny the allegation. She realizes now, after talking with St. Peter police detective Travis Sandland, that she did vote twice. She voted once with an absentee ballot on July 13 and again at her polling place Aug. 14. “It had been awhile and I didn’t even remember,” Schneider said. “I was shocked to death because I thought my absentee ballot was for the president.” Schneider’s daughter, Eva Moore, signed the absentee ballot as a witness. In most cases, she also would have given her mother a ride to her polling place during the Aug. 14 primary election. The weather was nice that day, however, and the polling place close to Schneider’s apartment, so Schneider walked up to vote on her own.

Minnesota: Democrats poised to suggest big changes in election system | Minnesota Public Radio News

On the heels of a failed Republican-backed constitutional amendment that would have required Minnesotans to present photo identification at the polls, Democrats in the Minnesota Senate have introduced legislation designed to make voting easier through early voting. Under the proposed Senate omnibus elections bill, eligible Minnesota voters could begin casting their ballots 15 days before Election Day. The new early voting window would close on the Friday before the election. The sweeping bill also would allow more people to vote by absentee ballot without having to state a reason why they can’t vote in person at their neighborhood polling place on Election Day. So far, however, the proposed election chances have yet to receive any Republican support, which could be the key to their becoming law. Even though Democrats control both houses of the Legislature, Gov. Mark Dayton, a Democrat, has said he will sign election bills only if they have bipartisan support.

Minnesota: DFL’s proposed election-law changes unlikely without bipartisan support | MinnPost

This may not be the legislative session for substantial election law changes. Senate Democrats moved on an omnibus elections bill in committee this week without any Republican votes, even though Gov. Mark Dayton has maintained his pledge that election legislation must garner broad bipartisan support to secure his signature. It’s unclear how Democrats expect the measure to gain Republican backing going forward. “It gives us a little bit of power, too — almost like a veto,” House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt said on Friday. “If we don’t put any Republican votes up, he’s pledged to veto that stuff.”

Minnesota: Minneapolis short $385,000 for 2013 elections | StarTribune.com

A new ranked-voting method used by Minneapolis costs five times more per voter than traditional voting. The city is $385,000 shy. With still-fresh memories of long voting lines in November and slow vote tallies from the last Minneapolis elections in 2009, the city took steps Wednesday aimed at improving voting this fall. But it may have aimed short on the money to get the job done. City Clerk Casey Carl told the City Council’s Elections Committee on Wednesday that he’s short $385,000 of the nearly $1.7 million that’s needed to properly run the more expensive ranked-choice voting method the city uses for municipal elections. Election costs will run even higher this year than last year, when the city had a massive 82 percent presidential election turnout, he said. That’s despite an expected smaller turnout for the 22 races and a probable charter referendum.