Preparing for Elections

Election Judge Lists  Political parties provide lists to county by May 15 th  County will forward to cities  Cities may appoint judges from lists provided or may appoint other people who meet the qualifications May 15 th

Polling Place Requirements  Contact polling locations  Confirm availability  Review polling place accessibility  No polling place changes after May 11 th  Provide Hennepin County with resolution  Notify affected voters no later than 25 days before the next election May 11th

Precinct Boundary Changes  No later than June 1  Immediately notify Hennepin County of changes  Hennepin County will work with cities to make updates to precinct finder June 1 st

Notice of Polling Place Change  Sent at least 25 days prior to election  Nonforwardable notice  Every affected household with one registered voter (minimum requirement)  Notice available thru SVRS, if preferred No later than July 15 th

Candidate Filing May 17 th - May 31 st, or August 2 nd – August 16 th

Offices on the Ballot  Federal Offices  President, Vice President (General Only)  US Representative (3, 5, 6)  State Offices  State Senators  State Representatives  County Offices  County Commissioner (1, 5, 6, 7)  Three Rivers Park (1, 3, 5)  City Offices  School District Offices  Judicial Offices

Who files where?  Federal offices – Secretary of State’s office  State and Judicial offices – Secretary of State’s office or county in which the candidate resides  County offices – Hennepin County Government Center  City and School offices – city clerk or school district clerk’s office

Candidate Filing Dates  Two week filing period  Early filing – May 17 – May 31  Late filing – August 2 –August 16  Clerks must be open from 1-5pm on last day of filing  Withdrawal period  2 days after close of filing – open until 5pm on the last day of withdrawal  No refund of filing fee  Vacancy in nomination May 17 th - May 31 st, or August 2 nd – August 16 th

Notice of Candidate Filing  Lists all offices to appear on ballot  Filing dates and location  Publish notice 2 weeks before opening of filing  May 3 or July 19  Post notice 10 days before opening of filing  May 6 or July 22 May 3 th or July 19 th – publish May 6 th or July 22 th – post

Preparing for Candidate Filing  Candidate Filing Packet  Materials on OSS website  campaigns/become-a-candidate/ campaigns/become-a-candidate/  Candidate Filing Name Pronunciation form for the AutoMARK

Candidate Filing Process  Accept Affidavit of Candidacy  Accept filing fee (or petition in lieu of filing fee)  Unless otherwise specified in charter  1 st class cities - $20  2 nd and 3 rd class cities - $5  4 th class cities - $2  School district office - $2  A home rule charter or statutory city may adopt by ordinance a filing fee of a different amount not to exceed:  1 st class cities - $80  2 nd and 3 rd class cities - $40  4 th class cities - $15  Assign sequential filing number  Candidate receives filing packet materials and copy of affidavit Early Filing: May 17 th – 31 st Late Filing: August 2 n d – 16 th

Affidavit of Candidacy  Name printed is exactly as it appears on ballot  Name must be candidate’s true name or the name by which they are commonly known  Candidates may not use designations about occupation, principles qualifications, or opinions  Cities must use up to date Affidavit of Candidacy  *New Candidate names will be in upper and lowercase on the ballot  Be sure candidate name is clear on the affidavit before they walk away. Early Filing: May 17 th – 31 st Late Filing: August 2 n d – 16 th

Affidavit of Candidacy  Upon accepting affidavit, ASAP to county  to Kristin Sepeta AND Jim Howitt    Information will be entered into the OSS website  Each affidavit should be posted within 2 hours of receipt  Please check to confirm: Early Filing: May 17 th – 31 st Late Filing: August 2 n d – 16 th

Ballot Questions  Ballot questions also ed to county  Send ballot question wording in PDF  Ballot question wording will also be entered into OSS website August 26 th

Election Notices

Notice of Election to Auditor  Send by mail or electronically to Hennepin County  74 days before election  Primary – May 27  General – August 26  Must include:  Date of election  Offices to be voted on  Title and language of each ballot question May 27 th and August 26 th

Notice of Special Elections  Same requirements  If held on same date as state election – notice provided 74 days prior  If held on date other than state election – notice provided 74 days prior  Please contact county ASAP if you believe a special election might be on the horizon May 27 th and August 26 th

School District Notices  Commissioner of Education  Notice of Election – send copy of Notice to Auditor  If referendum cancelled, send notice  Post-referendum canvass report, send copy  Levy Referendum Mailed Notice  To each property taxpayer, list provided by county  Indicate projected tax increase  1 st class mail between days prior to election

Public Notice of Election  Cities – publish twice  Two weeks prior to the election; and  One week prior to the election  Schools – publish once  Two weeks prior to the election  Both – give at least 10 days posted notice July 26 th and August 2 nd – cities publish July 26 th – schools publish July 29 th – cities and schools post

Campaign Finance Year round

Campaign Finance – Chapter 211A  M.S. 211A governs financial reporting for:  Municipalities and school districts  Committees which must comply  Candidate committees  Political funds  Political committees  Exception: Bloomington, Brooklyn Park, Minneapolis and Minneapolis school district governed by M.S. 383B

Clerk Duties for Campaign Finance  Provide report forms  Receive financial reports  Notify candidate or committee if necessary reports have not been filed  File complaints with Office of Administrative Hearings  Make financial reports available for public inspection  Collect Certification of Filing forms from candidates  Issue Certificates of Election to winning candidates

Reporting Schedule: On the Ballot  Initial report  Due within 14 days committee has raised or spent more than $750  Pre-primary report  Due 10 days before primary or special primary  Pre-general report  Due 10 days before general election or special  Post-general report  Due 30 days after general or special election  Annual report  Due January 31 st of each year July 29 th - pre-primary October 28 th – pre-general December 8 th – post-general January 31 st – annual

Reporting Schedule: Not on the Ballot  Annual report  Due January 31 st of each year January 31 st

Additional Reports  Certification of Filing  Every candidate and every registered committee must complete  Due within 7 days after a general or special election  No Certificate of Election issued to candidate if not submitted  Final report  All debts must be paid  $100 or less remaining cash balance  Ends activity No later than November 15 th – Certification of Filing

Contribution Limits  Population of territory represented 100,000 or more  $1000 in election year  $250 in non-election year  Population of territory represented less than 100,000  $600 in election year  $250 in non-election year M.S. 211A.12

Online Accessibility  Reports made available on local government website  No later than 30 days after receipt  Available for 4 years from date posted  Provide Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board with link to website  Does not apply to cities with < 400 registered voters as of January 1 of the election year M.S. 211A.02

Failure to File Required Reports  If an initial report has been filed but the committee fails to file a subsequent report on the due date  Filing officer must immediately notify the candidate or committee of failure to file  If report is not filed within 10 days after notification is mailed, the filing officer must file a complaint with the Office of Administrative Hearings

Campaign Practices

Noncommercial Signs  All noncommercial signs of any size in any number may be posted  June 24 – November 18  Municipal ordinances may regulate the size and number of noncommercial signs at other times June 24 th - November 18 th

Election Day Activities  No campaigning within 100 feet of polling place building or anywhere on public property with a polling place  Including no campaign material, political badges or buttons  Absentee voting locations count as polling place August 9 th and November 8 th

Campaign Complaints  Violations of M.S. 211A or M.S. 211B filed with the Office of Administrative Hearings  Limitations, form, proof of complaints – see M.S. 211B.32

More Information  Candidate Filing  See OSS City Clerk Guide, or  OSS School District Clerk Guide  Campaign Finance and Campaign Practices  See OSS Campaign Manual *2016 Version Available Now

SVRS: Statewide Voter Registration System Year round

SVRS Functions  Maintained by county  Voter records  Precincts, polling places  Maintained by county and city  Absentee records  Reports available  Voter registration  Absentee ballot  Administrative reports

SVRS Access  Test IP address   *Please test prior to AB opening  User names, passwords maintained by county  Contact county to set up new users

SVRS Practice Module  Allows users to ‘practice’ using any SVRS functionality   Contact county for set up or log in issues

Voter Registration  Applications submitted to county or OSS  Pre-registration cut-off 21 days before each election  Voters submit paper applications, or  Voters submit online applications

Voter Registration  Voters can check to see if they are registered to vote  Link from Secretary of State’s website