Push for June primary is back on
A plan to move Minnesota's primary election from August to June is again in the mix at the Capitol, surviving an early attempt to stop it in its tracks Wednesday.
The House Government Operations and Elections Policy Committee left Rep. Kelly Fenton's bill in consideration for a broader elections bill. Fenton, R-Woodbury, said the goal is to have "more people have their voice heard in these primary elections."
The change has the backing of DFL Gov. Mark Dayton, who won't be on next year's ballot even though the governor's job will.
"I think it behooves both parties since there will be strong contests for my successor to have that decision made at the beginning of summer, have the intraparty disagreements resolved and then give the whole summer and fall to one candidate of each party and all the other parties, too," Dayton said.
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There is some governor's race intrigue surrounding the bill this time: Possible Republican candidate Kurt Daudt, the House speaker, is a co-sponsor of the bill. If the bill becomes law, the 2018 state primary would be held the third week of June.
Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon, a Democrat and the chief elections officer, said he wants the date moved up. He said paltry turnout in August – it was just 10 percent in 2014 when there was a competitive primary for the Republican gubernatorial nomination and a DFL battle for auditor – is proof the current date isn’t working.
“I hope it’s an idea whose time has come,” Simon said.
Republican Rep. Jim Nash of Waconia, a supporter of the bill, said he was involved in a primary in 2014 and struggled to get voters engaged.
“I almost had to light myself on fire it seemed to get people out to vote. Some might think that was a good idea. What I found was it was unbelievably difficult to get people to go to the polls,” Nash said. “In a state where we pride ourselves on participation and a county that always seems to lead the way on total turnout, this was really bad.”
The bill has gotten tripped up before because some lawmakers worry about facing intense primaries while they're tied up with the legislative session, which typically doesn't adjourn until late May.
Opponents also say campaigns are already too long and it would force candidates to get out of the gates sooner, driving up the cost of vying for office and exposing the public to extended political brawling.
"I don't think people want to be looking at lawn signs when they're driving to their kid's graduation in May," said Rep. Rick Hansen, DFL-South St. Paul. "The losers are going to be the people of Minnesota."
In committee, Rep. Michael Nelson, DFL-Brooklyn Park, tried to get the bill set aside. His motion was defeated on a 10-4 vote. He said trading one summer primary for another won't solve issues of turnout because people will still be in vacation mode.
"I don't think we're going to change that between June and August," Nelson said.
A lobbyist for Minnesota townships pointed to a possible complication. He said training for local election officials often occurs in June and would have to be fit in elsewhere if the date is moved up.