SUPREME COURT LIKELY TO ORDER SECRETARY OF STATE TO FINALLY DO HER JOB
11/05/2006
(ST. PAUL) 11/5/06 – Tomorrow, the Minnesota Supreme Court will likely order Secretary of State Mary Kiffmeyer to take immediate action to fulfill the duties of her office in time for Tuesday’s election. A petition was filed with the Court on Friday that included each issue raised last week by the Minnesota DFL Party.
“Secretary of State Kiffmeyer brought this rebuke on herself,” Minnesota DFL Party Chair Brian Melendez said. “She keeps touting her website as a ‘one-stop shop’ for election information. All she needed to do was actually provide full and accurate election information. Last week, we even spelled out for her what she needed to do but she still failed to act. Now she’ll be forced to. This rebuke from the state’s highest court on the eve of a major election is stunning and unprecedented.”
The complaint lists several allegations:
Kiffmeyer’s website fails to adequately inform voters about statutory provisions enacted in 2005 regarding the verification of residency for same day voter registration.
Kiffmeyer failed to notify residential facilities about the requirement that they submit a list of employees who are able to vouch for residents at least 20 days before an election.
Kiffmeyer’s website provides erroneous information about the polling locations for 42 precincts.
Kiffmeyer’s website fails to use the language that the legislature enacted in 2005 and 2006 to describe voting eligibility for people under guardianship and for ex-felons.
Kiffmeyer refused to modify any of the information provided to voters in response to the DFL Party’s complaint last week. After the most recent complaint filed on Friday, Kiffmeyer made two changes to her website. One change was proper, the other actually exacerbated the confusion about voting eligibility for rehabilitated felons.
“Secretary Kiffmeyer has been notified time and again about these problems. Her refusal to take action now is either a calculated effort to mislead voters or a stunningly arrogant display of her belief that she is above the law,” Melendez said.
Last Monday, the Minnesota DFL Party filed complaints with each of the 87 county elections officials in Minnesota alleging that Kiffmeyer is in violation of the Deceptive Campaign Practices Act for publishing inaccurate information on her website.
“It’s shameful that Minnesotans cannot count on their Secretary of State to get their information for voting, and they must instead depend on the courts to order to her to do her job,” Melendez said. “Thankfully, Mark Ritchie has already started doing the job of the Secretary of State and Minnesotans can count on him. He is prepared to step in and perform his duties effectively from his first day in office.”
Complete information about voting eligibility requirements and the options for same day registration can be found at DFL-endorsed Secretary of State candidate Mark Ritchie’s website: http://www.markritchie06.net. An accurate precinct finder is located at: http://www.dfl.org.