Get ready, get set, vote.
Starting Friday, Minnesotans can cast absentee ballots in the Aug. 10 primary that features a DFL contest for governor.
EARLY START
The extra early start date was prompted by a new election date -- normally, Minnesota primaries are held in September. The law moved the primary to August to allow members of the military extra time to get in their ballots.
REMEMBER THE RECOUNT?
The new dates aren't the only changes to the absentee voting process this year.
After the controversy over absentee ballots during the 2008 U.S. Senate recount and trial, legislators and the secretary of state moved to simplify and centralize the process.
Having seen all the mistakes voters -- and election judges -- made on those ballots, the secretary of state rewrote the instructions for how to fill out ballots so that they are easier to understand.
A NEW LAW, TOO
• Legislators did away with the requirement that election judges try to analyze voters' handwriting to match the signatures with the absentee ballot application and the ballot. Instead, officials will match identifying numbers, such the last four digits of a Social Security number or a driver's license.
• Voters will also be informed if their absentee ballots are rejected, and they'll then have a chance to do something about it.
• The law changes who decides whether an absentee ballot is valid. Previously, precinct judges in some areas decided whether an absentee ballot was properly submitted. Now, all those decisions will be made by centralized, trained boards.
WHAT TO DO?
• You can apply for absentee ballots by mailing in an application, available on the secretary of state's website and at local government offices.
• You can also vote "absentee in person" by visiting local county and some city election offices, according to the secretary of state.
• The absentee balloting period ends Aug. 9.
Rachel E. Stassen-Berger • 651-292-0164
