Strong turnout expected for presidential primary, early voting begins Friday




  • Jan 15, 2020


On March 3, Minnesota will hold its first presidential nominating primary in nearly three decades. Early voting begins Friday. (Daily News file photo)






Rice County residents stand in line during a 2016 caucus. The number of caucus-goers overwhelmed both parties in 2016, leading legislators to return to a presidential primary. (Daily News file photo)

With early voting set to start Friday, election officials in Rice County and across the state are gearing up for the first presidential primary the state has seen since 1992.

Even though the votes won’t be counted until March 3, Secretary of State Steve Simon noted on Twitter that the state’s Jan. 17 early voting means that Minnesotans will become some of the first voters in the nation to weigh in on the presidential contest.


Early voting is available at the Rice County Courthouse in Faribault as well as Northfield City Hall. Rice County Elections Director Denise Anderson said that her department is preparing for strong turnout, and will have extra staff available to help voters.


For this election, Minnesota’s voters will have to indicate their party preference before voting. That information won’t be public, but it will be transferred to the Republican and DFL parties for use in voter contact efforts.

In contrast to many other states, Minnesota has never previously required voters to register by party.

Of course, participants in the state’s precinct caucuses have always had their information recorded by the party whose caucus they attend. While the parties have insisted that the information won’t be used any more than information gathered at caucuses, Simon has been more critical. Concerned that the requirement could discourage voters, he’s backed legislation to restrict how parties can use the data.


On the DFL side, 15 candidates will be on the ballot, although some of them, such as New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, have since dropped out of the presidential race.

President Trump will be the only Republican on the ballot, though a write-in option will be available.


Rice County DFL Chair Shawn Growth said that the local DFL has promoted early voting through social media and email. Even though the County DFL is strictly neutral in the primary race, Groth said strong turnout could strengthen the local party.

With the race currently focused on Iowa, and Minnesota overshadowed by California and Texas voting on the same day, leading presidential candidates have largely ignored the state. So far, only a handful of official campaign events have been held.


Nonetheless, Growth said that volunteer-led groups have begun organizing in support of the four leading candidates: former Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, and former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg.


Growth said he’s also been surprised by how many people have come forward to volunteer with the local DFL rather than supporting a particular candidate. Although Rice County voted for President Trump, DFLers won the county in every statewide race in 2018.

“People who want to be involved and volunteer,” he said. “They’re concerned about where the nation is heading they want to see change.”


With only President Trump on the ballot, the Republican primary isn’t likely to be hotly contested. Still, Rice County Republicans Chair Kathy Dodds said that a strong turnout would strengthen the party and show support for Trump.


“We want to send a message that we are committed, we are strong and we do stand behind the president,” Dodds said. “We think he has improved our lives since he took office.”

Both DFLers and Republicans will still hold precinct caucuses Feb. 25. Although caucus-goers won’t get to vote in a presidential preference poll, they will get to select party officials, push changes to the party platform and seek election to local party conventions.

Groth and Dodds might disagree on many issues, but they both agree on the importance of attending local precinct caucuses. Both parties will hold precinct caucus training between now and March.

“A precinct caucus is where people can have an impact on what the party takes up in the next two years,” Groth said. “If you’re really concerned about an issue or a handful of issues, the precinct caucus is where you can come and share your ideas.”

Without the presidential straw poll, Dodds and Groth conceded that caucus turnout is likely to be lower than in 2016. However, they’re hopeful that voter enthusiasm could keep turnout high.


“I think people are really interested and want to be involved,” Dodds said. We’re gearing up for a strong turnout.”


Minnesota is allocated 75 pledged delegates to the Democratic National convention and 39 to the Republican convention. These will be allocated to each candidate based on the results on each Congressional district and statewide totals.

Caucus, primary or both?
The 2020 presidential primary will cost nearly $12 million, roughly triple original estimates. According to Secretary of State Simon, costs increased after the Legal Weed Now Party and Grassroots-Legalize Cannabis Party both achieved major party status in the 2018 election.

As in previous years, Minnesota will hold its primary election on “Super Tuesday,” which will be once again be the first Tuesday in March. It's the first day that states other than Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina are allowed to hold their primaries.

In the past, Minnesota has been part of a minority of states that have eschewed a presidential primary in favor of a caucus. The caucus system had its defenders, with many arguing it gave the average voter a reason to do more than just filling in an oval.


Critics argued conversely that caucuses provided an unrepresentative and limited slice of a party’s voters. Because voters need to show up at a particular time for a lengthy event, only the most passionate voters are likely to turn out.


In 2016, the divide between caucus and primary states was stark. Despite winning their respective parties’s nominations, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump both fared very poorly in caucus states like Minnesota.

Legislators from both parties cited high voter turnout in the 2016 caucuses as the issue that ultimately forced their hand. Across the state more than 100,000 Republicans and more than 200,000 DFLers attended their local caucus in 2016, overwhelming party infrastructure.

https://www.southernminn.com/lonsdal...958d6fcef.html