Minnesota Supreme Court rules Oak Grove can use paper voter rosters in 2026 election

OAK GROVE, Minn. (FOX 9) - On Friday, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled in favor of the City of Oak Grove, giving officials the authority to use paper voter rosters in its precincts for the 2026 general election.

Oak Grove Supreme Court ruling

What we know:

Brought by the Upper Midwest Law Center (UMLC) after state and county officials attempted to block Oak Grove's decision to return to paper voter rosters, the case sought to clarify whether Anoka County, rather than the city, controls the roster format for Oak Grove precincts in elections involving state, federal or county offices.

Dig deeper:

City of Oak Grove v. Steve Simon, et al., was heard by the court after state and county officials attempted to block Oak Grove's decision to return to paper voter rosters.

Oak Grove had previously used electronic rosters through an agreement with Anoka County, but later ended that agreement and notified officials it would use paper rosters in future elections.

The full petition filed can be found here.

Why you should care:

On Friday, the court rejected the argument that Anoka County, rather than the city, controls the roster format for Oak Grove precincts.

In the ruling, the court held that Minnesota law does not limit a city's authority to choose paper or electronic rosters for precincts inside city limits.

What they're saying:

During a press conference announcing the lawsuit in May, Nicholas Nelson from the Upper Midwest Law Center said, "The City of Oak Grove, Minnesota, has been using electronic voter rosters, but recently the city council took a second look and said, ‘You know what? All things considered, we think paper voter rosters are better for our city.’ So, the Oak Grove City Council passed a resolution on this, and they sent the notice to the Secretary of State that the law requires saying, 'We're going to use paper voter rosters.' But the Secretary of State and Anoka County will not cooperate. They know that Oak Grove is running its own polling place, is hiring its own poll workers, as the law requires, but they claim that Anoka County can order Oak Grove's own employees about what kind of voter roll equipment they have to use and how they have to use it. That doesn't make sense."

Oak Grove Mayor Weston Rolf also shared the following statement at the time it was announced: "Oak Grove is not asking for special treatment. "We are asking state and county officials to respect the authority the law already gives cities. Our community made a decision to use paper rosters in our precincts, and local election administration should not be overridden by officials outside City Hall."

At the time, city officials said they hoped to use paper voter rosters because of cost, security and reliability. 

The other side:

At the time the petition was filed, Anoka County officials released the following statement in response:

"As Minnesota’s fourth-largest county, Anoka County serves more than 240,000 registered voters across 128 precincts.

"To keep elections running smoothly and securely, we use electronic rosters and other proven election technology. These tools speed up voter check-in, protect sensitive data, and support accurate recordkeeping. Security safeguards are built into every stage of the process, from pre‑election testing to post‑election audits.

"Since electronic rosters were adopted countywide in 2018, Anoka County has had zero cases of fraud, security breaches, or related issues. Returning to paper rosters would increase the chance of human error and decrease efficiency.

"Anoka County complies with all requirements of Minnesota election law. The responsibility for interpreting and applying election statutes rests with the Secretary of State. Anoka County will continue to administer elections in accordance with state law and the guidance provided by the Secretary of State."

Big picture view:

The ruling could potentially pave the way for other Minnesota cities to seek similar authority over their own voter roster formats ahead of the 2026 general elections.