Early voting starts Friday. What do voters need to know?
Early voting for the 2026 primary election starts Friday and election officials are expecting a spike in turnout.
While Minnesota has famously high turnout in general elections, primaries always have fewer voters. Still, turnout increases “where there’s a lot of action and competitiveness on the ballot,” said Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon. “And we certainly have that this year.”
The last time Minnesota had an open governor’s race was 2018. That year, turnout in the general election was about 64 percent of eligible voters and 23 percent in the primary, which featured competitive nominating contests in both parties.
After both major parties largely failed to unite around candidates during their endorsing conventions last month, multiple high-profile races are set to have competitive primaries this summer.
https://www.mprnews.org/story/2026/06/23/early-voting-in-the-2026-primary-election-starts-june-26-what-do-voters-need-to-know