News Room
384,995 Ballots Sent in First Week of Voting for November 3 Election
SAINT PAUL – In the first six days of voting, local election officials in Minnesota have distributed 384,995 absentee and mail ballots. To date, 8,403 voters have cast their ballots in person and 3,919 have returned their ballots by mail.
“Voting season is here and Minnesotans are ready to cast their ballots,” said Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon. “With more 40 days left until Election Day, Minnesotans still have lots of time to make their voice heard. Minnesotans can make their plan to vote now at mnvotes.gov, where they can register to vote, view their sample ballot, request an absentee ballot, track their ballot, find their polling place, and more.”
In 2022, 11,380 Minnesotans cast their ballots in-person or by mail during the first week of voting. Local elections sent out 286,324 absentee and mail ballots in the first week of voting during the 2022 General Election.
The Office of the Secretary of State will update absentee voting data each week through the fall.
There are three ways to vote in Minnesota:
- By Mail: Minnesotans can vote by mail by requesting a ballot at mnvotes.gov/absentee starting September 18. About 150,000 Minnesotans live in mail ballot precincts and will be mailed a ballot automatically if they are registered to vote.
To be counted, absentee ballots returned in-person must be received by local election offices by 5 p.m. on Election Day. Absentee ballots returned by mail and mail ballots must be received by 8 p.m. on Election Day.
Voters can track their ballot at mnvotes.gov/trackmyballot. - Early In Person: Minnesotans can vote early in person at their local election office during business hours between September 18 and November 2.
Beginning on October 16, voters can cast their ballot into a ballot tabulator using the new early voting process. Learn more about voting early in-person.
Early voting locations will have extended voting hours on the following days:- Saturday, October 24 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- Tuesday, October 27 open until 7 p.m.
- Saturday, October 31 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- Sunday, November 1 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- Monday, November 2 open until 5 p.m.
- In-Person on Election Day: Minnesotans can vote in-person at their local polling place on Tuesday, November 3. Find your polling place at mnvotes.gov/pollfinder. All polling places are open until 8 p.m. As long as voters are in line to vote by 8 p.m. they can vote. In Minnesota, people can register to vote on election day. Check your registration online at mnvotes.gov/register.
To be eligible to vote, a person must be 18 or older by Election Day, a U.S. Citizen, a resident of Minnesota for at least 20 days, not currently incarcerated for a felony conviction, and not under a court order that revokes your right to vote. If you are eligible to vote, you can register to vote at mnvotes.gov/register.
Online interactive tools for voters to register to vote, check their registration, request an absentee ballot, and track their absentee or mail ballot are also available in 11 languages.
General voting information is also available in Spanish, Hmong, Somali, Vietnamese, Russian, Chinese, Lao, Oromo, Khmer, Karen, and Amharic.
Election Call Center
Voters can reach the Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State at 1-877-600-VOTE (8683) or by texting 651-217-3862. Staff are available to answer questions about voting Monday – Friday between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.