Olmsted County shares voter turnout; Delays expected for Special CD1 election results
ROCHESTER, Minn. (KTTC) – Minnesotans are encouraged to vote in the Aug. 9 Primary and Special Election.
“We know there’s a lot of things we need to change and a lot of things we need to make a difference with. So it’s so important to vote,” said Adrianne Grinstead, an early voter.
Despite the encouragement, the Olmsted County Elections Office said fewer people hit the polls when there’s not a presidential race.
“For the 2020 General [election] we had right around over 100,000 people vote for the presidential election,” said Luke Turner, the elections manager. “For a primary, it’s not going to reach those numbers. 30 [thousand] to 40 [thousand] may be optimistic, somewhere in that range.”
However, Turner said Olmsted County has more than 100,000 people registered to vote, as of Monday.
“Absentee we’ve had about 5,000 to 6,000 that have come through and voted so far,” Turner said.
He also wants southern Minnesota voters to remember there are two sides to the ballot.
“On the front side of the ballot is the partisan side you’ll see the four major political parties. Voters are allowed to vote for one party, one column only,” Turner said. “They’re voting to narrow down their candidate who will appear in the November General election.”
Ballot Side 1: Primary Election
- U.S. Representatives District 1
- Governor and Lieutenant Governor
- Secretary of State
- Attorney General
“On the back side of the ballot is the Special Election for the Congressional District 1 race. That is to fill the seat for the remainder of the year. Also on the back side of the ballot, you have your non-partisan local races,” Turner said.
Ballot Side 2: Primary Election:
*Some races depend on where you live.
- Rochester Mayor
- School Board seats
- City Council
- County Commissioner
Special Election: U.S. Representatives District 1
The Minnesota Secretary of State said there will be a delay in results for the Special Election 1st Congressional District 1 race.
“This is really one of those, one in a million situations,” said Steve Simon, the Secretary of State. “If you live in the First Congressional District there is both the special general election and then there’s the regular primary election. The problem is that both elections can’t occupy space on the election night reporting system. It’s not the way the system is built.”
That means southern Minnesotans can expect to get the Special Election results for the CD1 race after the other races are called.
“We hope it won’t be too long. It won’t be a matter of days and days. It will be a matter of hours,” Simon said.
On Tuesday, polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
The Olmsted County Elections office wants people to check their polling location. Turner said because of redistricting certain voters may have a new polling site.
Click here to find out your polling place. Minnesotans who are not already registered to vote can register when they go to the polls.
Click here to see a sample ballot.
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