Vote by Mail or Designated Agent

Voting Absentee by Mail

Note: Voters serving in the military or those outside of the U.S., should visit the state’s Military and Overseas Voter Service to complete your absentee ballot request. 


Follow these steps to complete your absentee ballot by mail:

  1. Request an Absentee Ballot online through the Secretary of State. Note: Please provide both your driver's license and the last four of your SSN to be sure your absentee ballot will be accepted

    -- OR --

    Obtain a paper absentee ballot application. Download the absentee application. Complete and return your application as soon as possible. You may submit your application by mail, fax, or as scanned image to an email.
  2. Upon receipt of your completed application, your absentee ballot and materials will be mailed to you as soon as ballots become available – 46 days before the primary and 46 days before election day. If you are not registered to vote, the material will include a voter registration application.
  3. Follow the instructions provided in your absentee ballot materials to complete the process successfully. You will need a witness to certify that your ballot was delivered to you blank and that you marked your ballot in private. This witness can be anyone registered to vote in Minnesota, including your spouse or relative; a notary public; or a person with the authority to administer oaths.
  4. Return your absentee ballot materials by election day to the City Clerk. There are several delivery options:
    • Send your ballot materials back using U.S. mail or a package delivery service so that it arrives on or before election day. 
    • Return your ballot in person by 3:00 p.m. on election day. Note: Be sure to have your ballot witnessed before you come. City staff can NOT sign as a witness for a voted absentee ballot after it has left City Hall.
    • Ask someone to return your ballot for you before 3:00 p.m. on election day (this person cannot deliver more than three ballots).

Note: Your ballot may NOT be delivered directly to your polling place! 


Voting Absentee Using a Designated Agent

In the seven days preceding an election through 2:00 p.m. on election day, voters may ask a person they know to be their “designated agent” to pick up their ballot and bring it to them and return it. To be an agent, a person must be at least 18-years-old, have a pre-existing relationship with the voter, and cannot be a candidate. No individual may be an agent of more than three voters in an election.

An agent may bring a ballot to a voter if the voter is one of the following:

  • Disabled or has an incapacitating health issue
  • Patient in a health care facility
  • Resident of a group home
  • Resident of a shelter for battered women
  • Resident of an assisted living facility

Ballots must be returned to City Hall by 3:00 p.m. on election day.

You must complete a form to let local election officials know you that you have designated a person as your agent. To obtain a form, visit the Secretary of State’s website or call 651-215-1440 or 877-600-8683 (toll free).


Absentee Ballot Processing

Your ballot will be processed within days of arrival and you will be notified if there is a problem.