Minnesota election officials are changing the state’s automatic voter registration system ahead of Election Day after finding roughly 1,000 potentially problematic entries.
About 1% of the more than 90,000 residents of the Gopher State that have been automatically registered or pre-registered to vote — while obtaining state-issued IDs such as driver’s licenses — since April have been flagged for potential problems, according to officials.
The group includes 16- and 17-year-olds who can be pre-registered to vote once they turn 18. The automatic process doesn’t require any registrants to confirm they meet legal criteria.
Those registrations in question will now remain “inactive” until names, addresses and citizenship status are confirmed, Minnesota Public Radio reported, and additional checks will be made to ensure eligibility criteria is met in time for November’s contentious presidential election.
“The Office of Secretary of State has worked with [Minnesota Driver and Vehicle Services] to add additional quality assurance to the process to catch and correct the instances of human error,” Secretary of State Steve Simon said.
“Moving forward, DVS is using two distinct staff areas to double-check all documentation at DVS before applicant files are sent to be registered to vote,” the Democrat said.
The verification changes will include notifying flagged individuals that, if they are eligible, they will need to register to vote online, at their local election office, or in-person at their polling place on Election Day, according to reports.
Vice President Kamala Harris leads former President Donald Trump by just over 4 points in Minnesota — the home of her VP pick, Gov. Tim Walz, according to polling results released this week.
Republican state lawmakers raised questions about the automatic voter registration system earlier this month — demanding to know the exact number of problematic registrations and whether any of those people were able to vote in the August primary election.
They also called on state public safety leaders to provide additional answers about its screening process.
“The election is 52 days away, and early voting begins on September 20. Minnesotans want to trust our elections are secure and fair,” Republican leaders in the Minnesota Legislature said in a statement.
Officials say they are not aware of anyone illegally voting as part of the system.
An analysis of automatic voter registrations through the DMV in Oregon found more than 300 non-citizens had been registered to vote since 2021 — which violates federal law in the US — and at least two had cast ballots in recent elections, officials revealed this week.
Minnesota grants driver’s licenses to residents regardless of immigration status, though officials have said there are sufficient safeguards against illegal voting as part of the process.
With Post wires
