What it takes to make elections secure and accessible

The midterm elections are still months away, but voting is already a major focus.

President Donald Trump has claimed that non-citizens vote illegally in large numbers, though there’s no evidence of widespread fraud. Still, he has backed the SAVE Act, which would require in-person proof of citizenship to register. It passed the House, stalled in the Senate and some Republican-led states are moving ahead with similar requirements.

At the same time, the federal government is seeking access to state voter rolls, the president’s attacks on mail-in voting have ramped up and the Supreme Court may weigh in on mail-in ballot deadlines.

So how secure are elections in Minnesota and across the country? Are new laws needed — or not? MPR News host Angela Davis and her guests talk about how our election systems can balance security with access.

Guests:

• Steve Simon has been Minnesota’s Secretary of State since 2015. He oversees elections and partners with township, city and county officials to organize elections on behalf of Minnesota’s four million eligible voters. He previously served in the Minnesota House of Representatives representing St. Louis Park and Hopkins. He’s a past president of the National Association of Secretaries of State.

• Jennifer Morrell is the CEO and co-founder of The Elections Group, which works with election officials from across the country on how to conduct fair and secure elections. She is an adjunct faculty member at the University of Minnesota’s Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs in its graduate Certificate of Election Administration program. She’s also a veteran of the U.S. Air Force and served as an election official in Utah and Colorado.

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Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.