Voters still have time to request an absentee ballot for the Nov. 4 elections and can track the status of their ballot online, the Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State reports.
Voters can submit a request for an absentee ballot to be mailed to them online at mnvotes.org, or download an absentee ballot application, and return it by mail, email, fax or personal delivery.
Voters can start tracking the status of their absentee ballot a few business days after submitting a request for a ballot. They can learn when their ballot was mailed, and if it was received and accepted. Voters who do not see a record of their absentee ballot in the online lookup tool are encouraged to re-submit another request for a ballot, or contact their county elections office.
To date, 152,070 absentee ballots have been distributed to voters for the Nov. 4 General Election, of which 69,561 have been returned and accepted by election officials. Of the total ballots distributed, nearly 35,000 were requested through the “Request Absentee Ballot” tool at mnvotes.org.
Minnesota has “no-excuse” absentee voting — voters do not need to provide an excuse, such as being ill or out of the precinct on Election Day, to vote with an absentee ballot.
The Office of the Secretary of State reminds people that absentee ballots must be returned to their local elections office by Election Day, Nov. 4. Absentee ballot requests are processed quickly by the counties, however, as Election Day nears, voters should consider mail delivery times before requesting an absentee ballot by mail. Voters who have concerns about receiving their ballot in time may vote absentee in person at their local elections office through 5 p.m., Nov. 3, or at their polling place on Election Day. Absentee ballots may also be personally delivered by the voter to their elections office by Nov. 3.
Minnesotans who are not registered to vote can still vote absentee. Voters who vote absentee by mail also receive registration materials with their ballot; and those voting absentee in person can register at their local elections office while completing their ballot materials.
On Nov. 4, Minnesota voters will head to the polls to decide a U.S. Senate seat, all of Minnesota’s eight U.S. House seats, as well as governor, attorney general, secretary of state and state auditor and all Minnesota State House seats. The 2014 election will also include many county commissioners, county sheriffs, county attorneys, auditors, treasurers and recorders.
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