2007 Minnesota Statutes

201.071 REGISTRATION CARDS.
    Subdivision 1. Form. A voter registration application must be of suitable size and weight for
mailing and contain spaces for the following required information: voter's first name, middle name,
and last name; voter's previous name, if any; voter's current address; voter's previous address, if
any; voter's date of birth; voter's municipality and county of residence; voter's telephone number,
if provided by the voter; date of registration; current and valid Minnesota driver's license number
or Minnesota state identification number, or if the voter has no current and valid Minnesota
driver's license or Minnesota state identification, the last four digits of the voter's Social Security
number; and voter's signature. The registration application may include the voter's e-mail address,
if provided by the voter, and the voter's interest in serving as an election judge, if indicated by the
voter. The application must also contain the following certification of voter eligibility:
"I certify that I:
(1) will be at least 18 years old on election day;
(2) am a citizen of the United States;
(3) will have resided in Minnesota for 20 days immediately preceding election day;
(4) maintain residence at the address given on the registration form;
(5) am not under court-ordered guardianship in which the court order revokes my right to
vote;
(6) have not been found by a court to be legally incompetent to vote;
(7) have the right to vote because, if I have been convicted of a felony, my felony sentence
has expired (been completed) or I have been discharged from my sentence; and
(8) have read and understand the following statement: that giving false information is a felony
punishable by not more than five years imprisonment or a fine of not more than $10,000, or both."
The certification must include boxes for the voter to respond to the following questions:
"(1) Are you a citizen of the United States?" and
"(2) Will you be 18 years old on or before election day?"
And the instruction:
"If you checked 'no' to either of these questions, do not complete this form."
The form of the voter registration application and the certification of voter eligibility must
be as provided in this subdivision and approved by the secretary of state. Voter registration
forms authorized by the National Voter Registration Act must also be accepted as valid. The
federal postcard application form must also be accepted as valid if it is not deficient and the voter
is eligible to register in Minnesota.
An individual may use a voter registration application to apply to register to vote in
Minnesota or to change information on an existing registration.
    Subd. 2. Instructions. A registration application shall be accompanied by instructions
specifying the manner and method of registration, the qualifications for voting, the penalties for
false registration, and the availability of registration and voting assistance for elderly and disabled
individuals and residents of health care facilities and hospitals. The instructions must indicate
that if the voter does not have a valid Minnesota driver's license or identification card, the last
four digits of the voter's Social Security number must be provided, unless the voter does not have
a Social Security number. If, prior to election day, a person requests the instructions in Braille,
on cassette tape, or in a version printed in 16-point bold type with 24-point leading, the county
auditor shall provide them in the form requested. The secretary of state shall prepare Braille
and cassette copies and make them available.
    Subd. 3. Deficient registration. No voter registration application is deficient if it contains
the voter's name, address, date of birth, current and valid Minnesota driver's license number or
Minnesota state identification number, or if the voter has no current and valid Minnesota driver's
license or Minnesota state identification number, the last four digits of the voter's Social Security
number, if the voter has been issued a Social Security number, prior registration, if any, and
signature. The absence of a zip code number does not cause the registration to be deficient.
Failure to check a box on an application form that a voter has certified to be true does not cause
the registration to be deficient. The election judges shall request an individual to correct a voter
registration application if it is deficient or illegible or if the name or number of the voter's school
district is missing or obviously incorrect. No eligible voter may be prevented from voting unless
the voter's registration application is deficient or the voter is duly and successfully challenged in
accordance with section 201.195 or 204C.12.
A voter registration application accepted prior to August 1, 1983, is not deficient for lack
of date of birth. The county or municipality may attempt to obtain the date of birth for a voter
registration application accepted prior to August 1, 1983, by a request to the voter at any time
except at the polling place. Failure by the voter to comply with this request does not make the
registration deficient.
A voter registration application accepted before January 1, 2004, is not deficient for lack
of a valid Minnesota driver's license or state identification number or the last four digits of a
Social Security number. A voter registration application submitted by a voter who does not
have a Minnesota driver's license or state identification number, or a Social Security number, is
not deficient for lack of any of these numbers.
    Subd. 4. Change of registration. Any county auditor who receives a registration card
indicating that an individual was previously registered in a different county in Minnesota shall
notify the county auditor of that county electronically through the statewide registration system
in the manner prescribed in the rules of the secretary of state. A county auditor receiving a
registration card indicating that a voter was previously registered in a different precinct in
the same county or receiving a notification as provided in this subdivision shall remove that
individual's voter registration card from the files. Any county auditor who receives a registration
card or notification requiring a change of registration records under this subdivision as a result
of an election day registration shall also check the statewide registration system to determine
whether the individual voted in more than one precinct in the most recent election.
    Subd. 5.[Repealed, 1990 c 585 s 34]
    Subd. 6.[Repealed, 1990 c 585 s 34]
    Subd. 7.[Repealed, 1983 c 124 s 6]
    Subd. 8. School district assistance. School districts shall assist county auditors in
determining the school district in which a voter resides.
History: 1973 c 676 s 5; 1974 c 583 s 3,4; 1977 c 395 s 3; 1978 c 714 s 2,30; 1981 c 29
art 2 s 9; 1981 c 92 s 1; 1983 c 124 s 1-3; 1983 c 303 s 1; 1984 c 471 s 1; 1984 c 628 art 3 s
11; 1986 c 444; 1987 c 175 s 1; 1987 c 266 art 1 s 8,9; 1987 c 361 s 5; 1988 c 646 s 3; 1990 c
453 s 1; 1990 c 585 s 6,7; 1993 c 223 s 1; 1997 c 147 s 3; 2004 c 293 art 1 s 6-8; 2005 c 10 art
4 s 4; 2005 c 56 s 1; 2005 c 156 art 6 s 16