Final Days for Voting - what you need to know

It is too late now (Nov 1) to mail your Absentee Ballot.  If you still have your ballot at home, you should bring it to your city office or the county courthouse to drop off on Monday, Nov 2, or just vote in person either Monday Nov 2 or Tuesday Nov 3.  You can vote in person Monday Nov 2 (8-5) at city offices in Anoka County (see list below) or the Anoka County Courthouse. Or vote at your local polling place on November 3. More info on the MN Secretary of State's website, including live links to each voting location for hours and directions: mnvotes.org.  

Voting Locations

• In-person absentee voting for ALL Anoka County voters is available at the Anoka County Government Center
• In-person absentee voting at municipal locations is ONLY for residents of that city
• Click here for a map of in-person absentee voting locations for Monday, November 2
• On November 3, go to your local precinct polling place - find this at mnvotes.org.  

LWV Minnesota  reported late Thursday that a three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the Minnesota Secretary of State did not have the authority to extend the deadline to November 10 for receipt of mailed absentee ballots. Therefore, absentee ballots arriving after Election Day must be counted separately from other ballots. (Ruling at bottom of post.)

The ruling did not specifically invalidate absentee ballots received after November 3 but mandated that those votes be segregated into a special group that, by implication, could become the target of future law suits. The ruling did not indicate whether all races on the ballot would be equally vulnerable. An appeal may be in the works from the Secretary of State and/or Attorney General.

The message from the Secretary of State's office is simple and unambiguous: starting October 30, do not return absentee ballots by regular mail due to the risk they could eventually be invalidated. Even so, all votes cast will be tabulated; Minnesota county elections offices will report the number of absentee votes received by mail every day for a week following the election.

Those who recently returned absentee ballots should use the ballot tracker tool to confirm that their ballot has been accepted and will be counted:   https://mnvotes.sos.state.mn.us/AbsenteeBallotStatus.aspx

Those who have not yet voted (or who find their mailed absentee ballot has not yet been accepted when they use the link above) have two viable voting plans to consider: 1. vote absentee in person at local election offices, or 2. vote in person on Election Day.  
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Remember:

• Minnesotans can hand-deliver up to three completed absentee ballots in addition to their own.
• Absentee ballots cannot be used to vote in a polling place on Election Day. Election offices that are open on November 3 are allowed to accept in-person absentee ballots until 3:00 p.m. Check the hours open.
• As long as a voter is not designated AB on the precinct roster, that voter may vote by regular ballot at the polling place on November 3.
• The Secretary of State's hotline is 1-877-600-VOTE (8683) and will be staffed 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 pm. today and Monday; Saturday 8:00 to 4:30 p.m.; and from 6:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. November 3.