‘It’s a great statement about our country’: With election looming, Minnesotans voting early after federal court ruling on absentee ballots

Voting 2020, Minnesota style, means you don’t need a voting booth or to even go inside.

Instead, you can put your ballot into a secured, backpack-like bag with a slot.

"You just put it right in there, this is an actual ballot box," instructed a poll worker to one voter on Sunday.

On this day, the ballot drop-off location was also a bit different: Allianz Field.

"I’ve never voted ahead of Election Day," smiled Samantha Langlie, who just moved to St. Paul. "This was super easy. Just walked in and it took like five minutes, not even, and we get to see the field."

Early voters got to cast their ballots either outside or inside, where the phrase "I voted" was displayed on the video screen.

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Turns out, two days before Election Day, Minnesotans are scrambling to vote early.

Part of it is the three Cs: COVID, cold and crowds.

"COVID, the long lines, especially it’s with the cold here, you don’t want to stand outside for too long," explained Langlie’s husband, Jordan.

The Minnesota Secretary of State’s Office released new voting numbers on Sunday, showing that, so far, more than 1.5 million Minnesotans have voted absentee.

In these final days, voters have waited in long lines to cast their ballots.

In Brooklyn Park on Friday, there were two-hour waits, perhaps spurred on by something else: a federal court ruling, saying all mail-in ballots received after 8 p.m. Tuesday may not count; set aside for possible legal challenges.

Appeals court rules Minnesota absentee ballots must be received by Election Night

"When I heard that, this was my final moment to do that, so this is why I chose to come here," declared Mikal Miller, of St. Paul. "This is a lot easier option, so a lot of people I know are doing this."

A previous state court ruling allowed ballots to be counted as late as Nov. 10, as long as they were postmarked by Election Day.

Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon warned voters.

"The No. 1 thing voters should know is, if they have an absentee ballot in hand right now, or they ordered one and are about to have it in hand — do not place it in the mail," he said. "It is too risky at this point."

With time running out, nearly 300,000 Minnesota absentee ballots have still not been returned.

"We’ve never had this many early votes," said University of Minnesota political science professor Larry Jacobs.

He added that the high number of absentee ballots is a good sign.

But now, Jacobs advises voters to find a drop-off location or vote in-person on Tuesday.

"It’s a great statement about our country and the commitment of citizens to having a voice," Jacobs said.

Elections officials said you can vote in-person, even if you’ve already requested an absentee ballot or have dropped one off in the mail.

An election worker will check to make sure a mail-in ballot wasn’t submitted and accepted. He or she can invalidate it and give you a new ballot.

Jordan Langlie said he’s happy voters have the time and the opportunity — like at Allianz Field — to choose alternative voting options.

"That was a huge factor for me," he exclaimed. "Because I was planning on mailing it in and when we saw that, we thought we’d head over here and drop it off right away."

You can find more information in our ‘Vote 2020’ guide on KSTP.com.