How Should Minnesota Vote In A Pandemic? Simon Says, By Mail

From the Minnesota Reformer:

By Ricardo Lopez, April 8, 2020

How should Minnesota vote in the middle of pandemics?

Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon on Wednesday proposed legislation that would grant him one-time, emergency authority to conduct the upcoming election by mail during the COVID-19 outbreak.

“The administration of elections has become a public health issue. Minnesotans should not have to choose between their health and their right to vote,” Simon said in a statement ahead of Tuesday’s virtual committee hearing for the bill. “After talking with elections professionals from all levels of government throughout the state, the goal became very clear to me: We need to minimize exposure at polling places and maximize voting by mail.”

If Minnesota lawmakers approve the legislation, this year’s election would shift almost exclusively to mailed-in ballot.

Among the changes sought:

• Each registered voter will automatically receive a ballot in the mail.

• Witness signature would be required for voting.

The changes Simon seeks comes a day after Wisconsin conducted its primary on Tuesday, with voters waiting hours to vote amid a global health pandemic that has claimed 100 lives in Wisconsin and sickened more than 2,700 people, according to lab-confirmed testing.

Simon’s bill, which received no formal action on Wednesday, has nonetheless garnered the support of House DFLers, according to a statement issued after the informational hearing.

“We live in uncertain, drastically changing times, and it’s imperative that Minnesota remains responsive to whatever situation might present itself during the August primaries and the November election,” said Rep. Raymond Dehn, DFL-Minneapolis, chair of the House Subcommittee on Elections.

Nearly 1 in 4 Minnesotans already cast votes by mail in recent elections, and the secretary of state’s office reports that all non-metropolitan townships and cities with less than 400 registered voters outside of the seven-county metropolitan area can choose to hold elections by mail.

The Minnesota Reformer is an independent, nonprofit news organization dedicated to keeping Minnesotans informed and unearthing stories other outlets can’t or won’t tell..