Don't forget to vote

When to vote

Polls will be open across most of Minnesota and Wisconsin today from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Where to vote

Some polling places changed with precinct lines after this year’s redistricting. But finding your polling place is easy.

In Minnesota, go to pollfinder.sos.state.mn.us, type in your ZIP code, then type in your street address. If you don’t have access to the Internet, contact the office of Carlton County Auditor/Treasurer Paul Gassert at 218-384-9127.

What to expect

As far as the physical act of voting goes, the trickiest part (besides deciding who to vote for) will be remembering to vote both sides of the ballot.

“The front [of the ballot] is a narrowing of the fields for the major parties, to one candidate each,” Gassert said, noting that only the DFL, Republican and Independence parties have achieved major party status in the state. “On the back are the judicial elections with three candidates each, which need to be narrowed to two.”

The most contested election on the primary ballot for Carlton County will certainly be the DFL race for the Minnesota House of Representatives District 11A, a new district which includes ….

Voters who ask for a Democratic-Farmer-Labor ballot will choose which District 11A candidate – Bruce Ahlgren or Mike Sundin – to send to the general election in November. Although Republican candidate Jim Putnam and Independence Party candidate Cory Pylkka are also listed on the ballot, both are unopposed and will automatically move on to November.

All three parties have multiple candidates for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar. Klobuchar is one of four candidates on the DFL ballot, which also includes Jack Edward Shephard, “Dick” Franson and Darryl Stanton. Republican Party candidates for U.S. Senate are David Carlson, Bob Carney Jr. and Kurt Bills, while Independence Party candidates are Stephen Williams and Glen R. Anderson Menze.

Three DFL candidates – Tarryl Clark, Jeff Anderson and Richard Nolan – are running for the U.S. Representative District 8 seat held by Republican Chip Cravaack. (Look for a story on that race in next week’s Pine Journal.)

Two nonpartisan judicial races are listed on the back of the ballot. Voters are asked to vote for one candidate each for Chief Justice Supreme Court – Lorie Skjerven Gildea (incumbent), Jill Clark, Dan Griffith – and Associate Justice 4, including Alan Nelson, Time Tingelstad and incumbent David Stras.

Gassert said voters can register at the polls today. To register at the polls, a prospective voter needs a Minnesota Driver’s License or Minnesota ID card with current address, or a tribal id card (including Fond du Lac photo ID cards). He said a college ID card is not currently allowed.

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