Minnesota is another step closer to accepting voter registration and absentee ballot applications online.
The House passed HF2096, sponsored by Rep. Steve Simon (DFL-Hopkins), on a 129-2 vote Wednesday. It will go next to the Senate where Sen. Katie Sieben (DFL-Newport) is the sponsor.
The bill has bipartisan support, Simon said. It would allow voters to register online or apply for an absentee ballot online if they have a valid Minnesota driver’s license, the last four digits of their Social Security number or a valid Minnesota identification card. The application would not be confirmed until the secretary of state’s office verified it and the office would send suspicious applications to law enforcement agencies.
“It’s real reform in the right direction in terms of making voting easier and more convenient for people who need that ease and convenience,” said Simon.
The bill would also require the Office of the Secretary of State to monitor IP addresses to safeguard against suspicious activity.
“We do so much else in life these days online,” Simon said. “It just stands to reason that we would do this as long as we are restricting it to, obviously, eligible voters and we have true security checks in place to make sure that there are no irregularities.”
Voter registration applications received before the date of the bill’s enactment would still be valid, a provision that addresses an online voter registration program the secretary of state’s office temporarily implemented in 2013. A court case on that program is pending.
Rep. Rick Hansen (DFL-South St. Paul) successfully added an amendment that would allow seasonal or holiday cards sent after an election and before the end of the election cycle to qualify as a non-campaign cost. Hansen’s amendment was previously approved by the House Elections Committee as HF2567.
An amendment offered by Rep. Tim Sanders (R-Blaine) that would have moved the state primary from August to June did not pass. Simon noted his support of the idea of the amendment, but he did not believe it should be added to the bill.