Campaigning

Campaign Cybersecurity

In response to the emphasis on secure elections, we encourage candidates and campaigns to consider campaign cybersecurity safeguards.

Fair Campaign Practices

All candidates, campaigns and committees in Minnesota must follow Minnesota's laws on Fair Campaign Practices. These laws and related case law are found in the Campaign Manual and its additions.

Violations of Fair Campaign Practices can be submitted to the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH). The OAH website has information about how to file a complaint and the Administrative Law Archive with all past decisions.

Candidates frequently ask about certain topics related to Fair Campaign Practices—see the following links for more information on:

• Campaign Signs
• Disclaimer Requirement
• Closed Captioning

The Office of the Secretary of State cannot interpret the law for candidates or campaigns.

Campaign Finance

Campaigns and candidates are often required to make information public about the money they raise and spend. These laws about campaign finance vary, depending on the office:

• Federal candidates follow federal laws and file with the Federal Election Commission
• State candidates follow Minnesota Statutes Chapter 10A and file with the Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board
• Local candidates and campaigns follow Minnesota Statutes Chapter 211A and local laws, and file with their local filing officer. Those that raise or spend larger amounts of money must make this information public through Campaign Finance filings.

Campaigns frequently ask about these topics related to campaign finance:

• Opening a Campaign Bank Account
• Supreme Court Ruling on Corporate Political Expenditures

Voter Information Requests

Campaigns often use lists of voter information as part of their campaign activities. This information is only available to registered Minnesota voters for purposes related to elections and political activities. The Data and Maps section has more details and order forms for the following reports, as well as other information:

• Registered Voter lists give voter names, address, phone (if available), and what past elections they have voted in.
• Absentee Ballot Application lists give the name and address of any voters who have applied for an absentee ballot for an election.
• Accepted Absentee Ballot lists give the name and address of any voters who have had an absentee ballot for an election accepted as of the date the report is run.
• Rejected Absentee Ballot lists give the name and address of any voters who have had an absentee ballot for an election rejected as of the date the report is run.