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Because of COVID-19, it is critical to American democracy and to protect public health that all voters have the option to vote absentee.
No voter should have to choose between risking their health and exercising their right to vote.
In Minnesota, voters would have had to fill out their ballot in the physical presence of a witness that would have needed to sign a certificate. Only a registered Minnesota voter, a notary or another person authorized to administer oaths could have played this role.
This witness requirement was inconsistent with social distancing protocol; it was untenable this year, so we sued.
Now, Minnesota has agreed not to enforce its witness requirement for the August primary elections, and the state will take steps to educate the public about this change.
This agreement is a win for voters because it shows that a state can meet three goals at the same time: protecting the right to vote, promoting public health during a pandemic and maintaining the integrity of the state’s elections.
Other states still need to take action to improve absentee voting during the pandemic. In total, 12 states have witness requirements—two others have voluntarily waived or modified them due to COVID-19, and South Carolina was recently ordered by a court to suspend its witness requirement for its June primary.
Additionally, voters still face barriers in other states such as strict excuse requirements for absentee voting and flawed signature match systems that disenfranchise absentee voters without notice.
Learn more about how states can protect voter access during the pandemic.
We CAN hold safe, secure elections amid COVID-19. But states need to act now.
Onward,
Danielle Lang
CLC Co-Director, Voting Rights & Redistricting
P.S. You can read more about today’s victory in Minnesota on our website. We also achieved an exciting victory today for absentee voting in New Jersey. Read about it here.
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