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The August 9 primary is fast approaching, and the general election will
be here before we know it. Here are some updated descriptions of
the accessible absentee ballot process. This information is
accurate as far as we know, but there are some aspects we have not been
able to confirm.<br><br>
Again this year, blind Minnesotans can vote privately, safely and
accessibly, because <a href="https://nfbmn.org/voting/2020-10-24">the
Secretary of State did the right thing by adopting an electronic tool to
mark absentee ballots</a> from home. While blind Minnesotans may need
assistance to sign the ballot envelope and add their identification
number, the ballot itself can remain private. <br><br>
If you would like to use the accessible absentee ballot for the August 9
primary, you must start working on that right away. Also, we have
recently learned that counties can optionally provide other approaches to
making absentee ballots accessible, so the process explained here could
vary. Finally, it is our understanding that there might not be an
accessible absentee ballot option in Ramsey County at this point for the
primary, but they will have a process in place for the general election
this fall. Also, remember that “early voting” using an accessible
voting machine is an option. <br><br>
Follow these steps to request, complete, and return your accessible,
absentee ballot.
<ol>
<li><a href="http://mnvotes.org/">Request your absentee ballot</a> using
the standard process. You will need the envelopes that will be sent with
your paper, absentee ballot, so don’t throw them away!
<li>
<a href="https://www.sos.state.mn.us/elections-voting/find-county-election-office/?searchTerm=county%20elections">
Contact your county’s election office (Office of the County Auditor),</a>
and request an an electronic ballot as a reasonable accommodation under
the Americans with Disabilities Act.
<li>Follow the link and instructions that your County Auditor will e-mail
to you to reach the Omniballot system hosted by Democracy Live.
<li>Print the marked ballot, and seal it inside the smallest, tan
envelope (called the Secrecy Envelope) sent with your absentee ballot.
<li>Insert the Secrecy Envelope into the medium-sized, white Signature
Envelope and seal it. At this point, you may need sighted assistance to
fully complete the required form fields on the signature envelope. This
includes your signature, a signature of a witness, and the identifying
code you used when you requested an absentee ballot. This identifying
code is either your State ID card number of the last four digits of your
Social Security number.
<li>Place this sealed envelope inside the largest Mailing/Return
Envelope, seal it, and mail it so that it arrives by Election Day.
</ol><br>
<a href="tel:+16512151440">Contact the Minnesota Voter Help Hotline at
(651) 215-1440</a> for any questions related to accessible
voting.<br><br>
If you can't locate your county's contact information, contact our office
at 612-872-9363 and we can locate it for you, but the website with this
information is pretty easy to use. As shown above, that link is<br><br>
<a href="https://www.sos.state.mn.us/elections-voting/find-county-election-office/?searchTerm=county%20elections">
Find Your County Election Office</a><br><br>
I found that finding your county on the list and pressing SPACE seems to
work best. The county information will appear just after the county name
but the rest of the list remains visible. Sometimes you may find that the
virtual cursor has gone to the top of the page and you may need to
navigate back to the county name you selected. Here is some
information for several major counties that cover the Twin Cities,
Rochester, Duluth, and the St. Cloud area.<br><br>
<br><br>
<h2><b>Benton County</b></h2><br><br>
Election official: Nadean Inman<br>
General phone: 320-968-5027<br>
Fax: 320-968-5337<br>
Website:
<a href="http://www.co.benton.mn.us/"><b>http://www.co.benton.mn.us/</a>
</b><br>
Email:
<a href="mailto:elections@co.benton.mn.us">elections@co.benton.mn.us</a>
<br><br>
<br><br>
<h2><b>Hennepin County Elections</b></h2><br><br>
Phone: 612-348-5151<br>
Fax: 612-348-2151<br>
Email:
<a href="mailto:hc.vote@hennepin.us">hc.vote@hennepin.us</a><br><br>
<br><br>
<h2><b>Olmsted County</b></h2><br><br>
Election official: Luke Turner<br>
General phone: 507-328-7650<br>
Fax: 507-328-7640<br>
Website:
<a href="https://olmstedcounty.gov/"><b>https://olmstedcounty.gov</a></b>
<br>
Email:
<a href="mailto:elections@co.olmsted.mn.us">elections@co.olmsted.mn.us</a>
<br><br>
<br><br>
<h2><b>Ramsey County</b></h2><br><br>
Election official: David Triplett<br>
General phone: 651-266-2171<br>
Fax: 651-266-2177<br>
Website:
<a href="https://www.ramseycounty.us/residents/elections-voting"><b>
https://www.ramseycounty.us/residents/elections-voting</a></b><br>
Email:
<a href="mailto:elections@co.ramsey.mn.us">elections@co.ramsey.mn.us</a>
<br><br>
<br><br>
<h2><b>Saint Louis County</b></h2><br><br>
Election official: Nancy Nilsen<br>
General phone: 218-726-2385<br>
Fax: 218-725-5060<br>
Website:
<a href="http://www.stlouiscountymn.gov/"><b>
http://www.stlouiscountymn.gov/</a></b><br>
Email:
<a href="mailto:elections@stlouiscountymn.gov">
elections@stlouiscountymn.gov</a><br><br>
<br><br>
<h2><b>Sherburne County</b></h2><br><br>
Election official: Diane Arnold<br>
General phone: 763-765-4351<br>
Fax: 763-765-4400<br>
Website:
<a href="http://www.co.sherburne.mn.us/"><b>
http://www.co.sherburne.mn.us/</a></b><br>
Email:
<a href="mailto:elections@co.sherburne.mn.us">
elections@co.sherburne.mn.us</a><br><br>
<br><br>
<h2><b>Stearns County</b></h2><br><br>
Election official: Randy Schreifels<br>
General phone: 320-656-3920<br>
Fax: 320-203-6960<br>
Website:
<a href="https://www.stearnscountymn.gov/"><b>
https://www.stearnscountymn.gov</a><br>
</b><br>
Email:
<a href="mailto:elections@co.stearns.mn.us">elections@co.stearns.mn.us</a>
<br><br>
<br><br>
<h2><b>Washington County</b></h2><br><br>
Election official: Christine Piskura<br>
General phone: 651-430-6175<br>
Fax: 651-430-6178<br>
Website:
<a href="http://www.co.washington.mn.us/"><b>
http://www.co.washington.mn.us/</a></b><br>
Email:
<a href="mailto:elections@co.washington.mn.us">
elections@co.washington.mn.us</a><br><br>
<br><br>
<br><br>
Best regards,<br><br>
<br><br>
Steve Jacobson, President<br><br>
National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota<br><br>
<a href="http://www.nfbmn.org/">www.nfbmn.org</a><br><br>
(612) 872-9363<br><br>
<a href="http://www.nfb.org/" eudora="autourl">www.nfb.org</a><br><br>
Live the life you Want.<br>
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