Protect voting rights
Ensuring that every eligible citizen is able to exercise their right to vote is a priority for LWV Minnesota.Our agenda for voting rights in the 21st century includes
- Opposing photo ID requirements for voters
- Establishing early voting in Minnesota
- Modernizing our voter registration system.
Opposing Photo ID requirements for voters
Things are not always what they seem, and that is the case with calls to require photo ID from voters, including those already registered. Efforts to require photo ID in elections play on people's fears about voting fraud without the evidence to back up the claims. Proponents often rely on misinformation and flawed data about voter fraud and election administration, as well as exaggerated claims about the security a photo ID requirement can provide. In the mean time, approximately 10% of eligible voters do not have photo IDs and would have significant barriers to getting one in order to vote.
Learn more about the problems with photo ID requirements.
Establishing early voting in Minnesota
Early voting allows voters the opportunity to cast their ballot in-person prior to Election Day on the same voting equipment as those used on Election Day rather than using an absentee ballot. Currently, 32 states have some form of early voting. Rather than having to wait until Election Day, those voters are able to find a date in the window of time available before Election Day to vote without having to worry about unanticipated health issues, irregular and uncertain work schedules, or any other complications that arise in modern life that may make it difficult to get to the polls. Minnesota does not yet allow for early voting. LWV Minnesota believes that doing so would help many eligible voters exercise their rights and be a step forward for voting rights.
Learn more about early voting.
Modernizing our voter registration system
Our voting rosters are the backbone of our election system. The accuracy of the lists of registered voters is critical for ensuring the integrity of the system, as well as making sure that citizens who have registered to vote are able to do so, hassle-free, on Election Day. Our current system that relies on paper voter registration cards, handwritten information, and manual data-entry would be improved by using technology that is currently available to permit online registration, as well as automatic registration for eligible citizens when they apply for or renew their driver's license or state ID card. In states that have moved to these kind of systems, the error rate has gone down while participation among young people - who are currently underrepresented at the polls - has gone up.
Learn more about how modernizing our voter registration will improve voting in Minnesota.