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Forum editorial: Minnesota can make vote better

April 29, 2009

Election reforms proposed by Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie would improve a system that already is one of the best in the nation. The reforms would not be wholesale changes, but rather pragmatic refinements. They should be embraced by the Legislature.

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LTE: Election Reform, Early Voting

April 28, 2009

Because Minnesota already allows voters to register and vote same day, we routinely lead the nation in voter turnout, early voting is the logical next step. I hope that our legislators in St. Paul recognize that early voting is good for Minnesota, and will vote for it this legislative session.

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Time for election reform

April 24, 2009

From the editorial board of the Fergus Falls Daily Journal:


If there’s one thing we’ve learned since the November elections, it’s that our voting system isn’t perfect. It might be one of the best in the nation, but some flaws exist.

Secretary of State Mark Ritchie was in Fergus Falls Thursday to discuss some election reform bills inching their way through the Legislature. He expects them to clear both the House and Senate. When that happens we encourage Gov. Tim Pawlenty to sign the bills into law.

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Letter: Protect absentee voters’ rights

Minnesota has always worked to make sure that every eligible voter who wants to vote is able to do so. Problems with the current cumbersome absentee-ballot system surfaced during our endless U.S. Senate contest.

The legislature has several bills that will help avoid our “absentee ballot problem” in the future. 

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Election reform bills quietly advancing that would let Minnesota 'catch up' with much of nation

Away from the noise and glare of the Norm Coleman-Al Franken legal battle, a collection of election reform bills has been moving slowly and somewhat quietly through the Minnesota House and Senate.

Together, the pieces of legislation, if passed, would fundamentally change the way Minnesotans vote and the state's election system operates.

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Our view: Ritchie's 3 reforms deserve OK

April 23, 2009

From the editorial board of the St. Cloud Times

We agree with Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie's assessment that the state's election laws have generally held up well under the intense scrutiny stemming from the U.S. Senate recount.


We also agree with Ritchie's three main proposals to improve the weaknesses that challenge has exposed in those laws, and we urge all Central Minnesota legislators to support them.

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Saving Money and Votes - Mostly

The Uptake has a video on the elections reform bills moving through the State Senate.

Secretary of state tells students about voting system's strengths, weaknesses

April 22, 2009

Ritchie said he’s looking forward to getting past the recount and talked about election changes he hopes the Legislature will enact for 2010.“I’ve been very anxious to harvest the lessons from this year.”

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Star Tribune Editorial calls for Election Reform

April 15, 2009

The Star Tribune called on the governor and state legislature to "act this year to simplify absentee voting procedures."  They didn't specifically endorse any proposals.  But early voting is the best way to simplify the process.

"Pride should not be blind to the possibility of improvement. Minnesota's absentee-ballot procedures are too complicated. They present voters with too many possibilities of unintentional errors. While the courts make haste to give Coleman's contentions another state review, the Legislature and governor should collaborate with similar urgency on revisions that would reduce the absentee-ballot error rate in the next state general election."

Read the complete editorial.

BROKEN ELECTIONS? The place to fix them is the Capitol, not court

April 10, 2009

The Star Tribune's April 8 editorial, "Coleman's charges need court's answer," correctly argues that every legitimate vote should be counted. But, the best way to prevent these types of problems is not through the current legal process, which can only address issues on a case-by-case basis, but through reforms passed at the Legislature that will strengthen our election system.

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