By LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS
“As I said before the right to vote is the crown jewel of American Liberties, and we will not see its luster diminished.”
These were the words of President Ronald Reagan speaking to the nation on June 29, 1982 upon his signing of the 25-year extension of the Voting Rights Act. This act first became law in 1965 and required states to follow the 14th and 15th Amendments’ guarantee that the right to vote not be denied because of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
Our democracy is at its best when citizens across the United States cast their ballots during election season. Whether the vote is for a school board member, state senator, or President of the United States, voting is our power to have our voices heard. We the people have the power to elect representatives to enact laws that match our needs and values.
State Laws Regulate Elections
Article 1, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution gives states the power to regulate “the times, places and manners of elections, though Congress can make or alter these regulations”… This means that the states run elections. When you cast your ballot at a polling place, the people working there are local government officials, your neighbors, friends, and family members hired to ensure a free, fair, and secure election where only registered U.S. citizens vote, and each vote is accurately counted.
While the federal government has passed laws like the Voting Rights Act to ensure greater access to voting, it is the local government that administers the election process according to the laws of each state. For example, some states, like Minnesota allow voter registration on election day while other states require voters to register before election day. In Minnesota local election officials in 87 counties administer elections following its state’s laws. Minnesota State laws dictate how ballots are created, distributed, and safely stored. Its laws dictate how ballot counting machines are purchased and tested before and after the elections to ensure their accuracy. A comprehensive list of registered voters (voter rolls) is maintained by the Minnesota’s Secretary of State office in collaboration with the counties.
Minnesota State laws also describe recruiting and hiring standards for the 30,000 election workers needed during election season. All election workers take an oath to perform their duties according to law: to prevent fraud, deceit, and abuse in conducting the elections and to perform duties in a fair and impartial manner, not advantaging any party or candidate.
The Secretary of State and those who work in his office are committed to supporting local officials in administering free, fair, and secure elections. But citizens often encounter allegations of election fraud in the press, social media, podcasts, and other media outlets. Allegations of fraud make for dramatic press headlines and these often unsubstantiated claims can undermine voters’ confidence in elections; that only citizens vote and that all votes will be accurately counted.
Voter Fraud
Are you concerned that large numbers of people are voting illegally?
The Brennan Center, a nonpartisan law and policy institute at New York University, has researched claims of voter fraud using data collected over the last 30 years and reports that it is extraordinarily rare. The Brookings Institute took a close look at the Heritage Foundation’s database on voter fraud. Small numbers of fraudulent ballots cast in the last 13-38 years were uncovered. For example, data from federal elections in Wisconsin over the last 20 years showed 69 instances of voter fraud among over 45 million ballots cast. That is .0001522%. There are comparable statistics across other states showing a similar lack of fraud.
Few people vote illegally because states ensure only eligible voters are registered to vote. To vote in Minnesota you must be a U.S. citizen, at least 18 years of age on election day, a resident of Minnesota for at least 20 days, and not currently incarcerated for a felony conviction or under a court order that revokes your right to vote.
Minnesotans are automatically registered to vote when they apply for a driver’s license or state ID card at Driver and Vehicle services. Original documents are needed to prove a person’s identity, date of birth, and legal presence in the U.S. such as a birth certificate, passport, certificate of citizenship or residency card. If the documents used to apply for a state ID or driver’s license show that you are a citizen, then your information is sent to the Secretary of State’s office for additional review. If the person is already registered to vote, no further action is required. If there is no clear evidence of a previous registration and the applicant has not had their right to vote taken away by the court, then that person’s information is sent to the county election office and the person is registered to vote. A flowchart showing the process is available at the Secretary of State’s office. This chart also provides information on how a person can opt out of automatic voter registration.
Voting Security and
Accuracy
How is the process of counting votes secure so you can be confident that your vote will be counted? Paper ballots are the cornerstone of ballot security in Minnesota. They provide a record of everyone’s vote and help determine the accuracy of ballot counting machines later, if needed.
Minnesota uses ballot counting machines to tabulate the paper ballots. They are not connected to the internet so they cannot be hacked. The Secretary of State’s office tests their accuracy before the election and again by local officials after the Election; the public are invited to watch.
How is your Ballot
Counted?
If you vote in person, you scan your ballot at one of these machines.
If you vote with an absentee ballot it is kept in secured storage until 18 days before the election.
Absentee ballots are processed by the state’s Absentee Ballot Board. The ballots are opened and reviewed by a team of two board members from different parties and then counted using the same type of counting machine used with in-person ballots.
What Happens to your Paper Ballot After it is Counted?
Ballots are placed in ballot transfer cases and sealed with two certification seals.
Two election judges (one must be either the head election judge or the assistant head election judge) oversee the process and sign off on mandated forms.
Sealed ballot boxes are transferred to Hennepin County Elections and stored for 22 months.
Our elections are administered by local officials and people from your community who are committed to free, fair, and secure elections. Layers of protection exist to ensure the integrity of your vote: from registration to the voting process to counting and certifying your vote. Concerns about extensive voter fraud that could change the outcome of an election are unfounded, and proposed laws to confront voter fraud have been called, “a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist.”
John F. Kennedy said on the eve of the 1962 midterm elections:
“ In these difficult days in the life of our country I know every American asks what he can do for his country… There is one thing that we all can do, and that is to demonstrate our faith in democracy, our strong belief in freedom… I hope every American will vote. To vote for the candidate and party of his choice but vote.”
Voting is your constitutional right. Show your faith in our state and those who administer our elections by voting.
Build your future: VOTE!
Next month the second article in our League of Women Voter Minneapolis 2065 Democracy Series will address the multiple ways to vote with attention to early voting and absentee (mail-in) ballots.
