MN Presidential Ballot Access
Minnesota Presidential Ballot Access Requirements
State-level general-election presidential ballot access requirements for Minnesota, including party nomination, petition access, and write-in rules where available in the NASS summary.
Party Nomination
Political Party Nomination
A presidential candidate nominated by a major political party may be placed on the general election ballot. Each major political party must certify to the secretary of state the names of the presidential electors and the names of the candidates for president and vice-president at least 71 days before the general election. To qualify as a major political party, a political party must:-file a certification indicating that: (1) the party has complied with its rules and constitution, (2) final authority over the party is vested in a state convention held at least every general election; (3) general management of the party is vested in the state central committee; (4) administration of party’s affairs is vested in the state executive committee; (5) a copy of the party’ s constitution has been filed with the secretary of state; and (6) the party’s rules requires conventions be held in each congressional district and at least 45 counties or legislative districts; and-present at least one candidate for constitutional office at the last general election for these offices, or presidential elector or U.S. senator at the last presidential election, who received votes in each county, received at least 8% of the total votes in that election; or-present at least 45 candidates for state representative, 23 candidates for statesenator, 4 candidates for representative in Congress, and 1 candidate for each constitutional office, at the last general election for these offices; or file a nominating petition with the secretary of state prior to the close of filing for the state primary containing the signatures of party members that equal at least 5% of the total votes at the last state general election.
Petition Access
Petition / Independent Candidate Access
A presidential candidate of a minor political party or other party, and independent presidential candidates, may obtain ballo t access by filing with the secretary of state no later than 77 days before the general election a petition containing the signatures of at least 2,000 eligible voters. The petition must include the names of the presidential electors. A minor political party is a party that has filed a certification indicating that it has adopted a state constitution; designated a state party chair; and held a state convention in the last two years, and:-presented at least one candidate for constitutional office at the last general election for these offices, or presidential elector or U.S. senator at the last presidential election, who received votes in each county in the aggregate equal to at least 1% of the total number of individuals who voted in the election; or,-filed with the secretary of state no later than the close of filing for the state primary a nominating petition containing the signatures of party members equal in number to at least 1% of the total number of individuals who voted in the preceding general election.
Write-In
Write-In Rules
A write-in candidate for president must file with the secretary of state a written request to have their write-in votes tallied and must include the name of the vice president and the name of a least one candidate for presidential elector no later than the 7th day before the election.
Legal Citations
Source Citations
- Minn. Stat. §§ 200.02, 204B.07, 204B.08, 204B.09, 208.03
Source and Use
How to Read This Ballot Access Data
This reference is generated from NASS Summary: State Laws Regarding Presidential Ballot Access for the General Election.
- Primary source
- NASS ballot access summary PDF
- Coverage
- General-election presidential ballot access requirements by state, as summarized by NASS.
- Use note
- Informational reference only; verify current law with the state election office, current statutes, and legal counsel.
- These entries summarize general-election presidential ballot access rules for political party nominees, petition candidates, fee access where listed, and write-in candidacies.
- Ballot access law can change through statutes, court decisions, and state election guidance. Verify requirements with the state election office before relying on them.
- This reference does not state whether any candidate has qualified for a state ballot.
- This page is informational and is not legal advice or a filing procedure guide.