New Minnesota early voting record set for 2026 midterm elections
Political Happy Hour: Minnesota sets early voting record
Political Happy Hour covers the day’s biggest political stories, the road to the 2026 midterms and what it means for voters and the Midwest.
(FOX 9) - Minnesota has set a new statewide early voting record, with 61.3% more ballots accepted than at the same point in the 2022 midterm election.
Minnesota early voting record grows
What we know:
After six weeks of early voting, the Minnesota Secretary of State's Office says it has accepted 728,961 absentee ballots statewide.
The total includes 483,520 ballots cast in person, and 245,441 cast by mail, according to officials.
Dig deeper:
As of Thursday, the statewide total was 61.3% higher than it was at the same point in the 2022 midterm election, according to the Minnesota Secretary of State.
The previous record in a non-presidential year at the same point in the voting period was 451,992 absentee ballots, set during the 2022 midterm election.
By the numbers:
Minneapolis has also moved past the highest number of absentee ballots it has seen in a non-presidential election, accepting 52,661 ballots as of Wednesday.
The total breaks the city's previous non-presidential record of 52,313 accepted absentee ballots, which was set in 2018.
The Source: Information provided by the Minnesota Secretary of State's Office election data.