Star Tribune staffer Ben Welter witnessed the following incident: A polling place supervisor noticed that the election judge handling R-Z voter roster overlooked a "check ID" notation beside one name. "Did you check his ID?" the supervisor asked. "No," she said. So together they rushed over to the voter in question, who was in the middle of filling out his ballot, to ask the awkward question: "May we see your ID?"
By now, many voters are aware that preregistered voters do not need to show a state ID to vote … usually, said Minneapolis City Clerk Casey Carl.
Voter registrations go through a host of checks before the cards are put in the mail in the fall. If there's a glitch – say if the voter changes his or her name, or has moved, for example – or if the card is bounced back through the mail to the county elections office, it will be marked with a challenge note. The voter will be asked to provide identification. If he or she has none, the voter will be asked to come back with an ID or someone to vouch for him or her.
Sometimes the voter erroneously shows up on a death registry.
"There's just a little note to the elections judge to let them know, hey, if this person shows up we think they might be dead, so please check," he said. "It's not a political challenge. We just want to make sure you're the right person in the polling place."
