Here’s what college students in Minnesota need to know about voting this fall

With the Nov. 5 elections approaching, out-of-state college students new to Minnesota face some logistical questions when it comes to voting. These include figuring out which state to cast their vote in and making sure to register before the election or on the same day. To answer these questions, the Minnesota Star Tribune spoke with Secretary of State Steve Simon and his office’s youth voter outreach specialist Michael Wall. Here’s their advice for college students and young non-student voters.

Students 18 and older who moved from another state to attend school in Minnesota may decide which state they want to vote in, depending on which state they want to list as their home residence, Wall said. The student would have to decide whether to register using their out-of-state home address or their school address in Minnesota. Students from outside Minnesota can request that absentee ballots from their state be sent to them at school so they can vote by mail. Minnesota natives who stay in the state for college also can decide whether to vote in their hometown or at school.

“It doesn’t matter whether it’s within Minnesota or from another state to Minnesota, that college student decides which one they consider to be their residence,” Wall said.

Those wanting to check their status, or see the full list of ID options accepted for registration, can do so at the Secretary of State’s website (mnvotes.gov). Simon warned that it’s a felony to vote in more than one state for the same election.

Each state makes its own residency regulations for voting. Some have stricter ID requirements than Minnesota, which is an easier state to register to vote than most, Simon said.

To find out how to register ahead of the election in another state, Simon recommended the National Association of Secretaries of State website, canivote.org. It includes dropdown links for each state’s page on voter registration and information pages for absentee and mail-in voting in each state.

New Minnesota residents, including students, must have lived in the state for at least 20 days to register to vote. Those who register before Election Day will not need to bring an ID to the voting booth. To register, new Minnesotans must provide proof of identification and proof of their address, such as a utility bill, bank statement or residential lease.

Colleges typically keep lists of all students living on campus and will send those lists to voter registration officials to confirm their address. Students then may show a different state or city’s driver’s license or other form of ID to confirm their identities. If a student is not on the college’s housing lists, they will need to provide alternative proofs of address, such as a utility bill or lease.

Simon emphasized there are other ways to prove one’s identity and address other than a driver’s license. Students sometimes think that they can’t vote without a license, but that’s not true, he said. “You’re not a prisoner of that driver’s license,” Simon said.

Asked what advice he would give to college students, Simon said it’s not necessary to vote on every race and proposal listed on a ballot. “People should vote for what they know and not feel any shame in leaving something blank,” he said.