MINNEAPOLIS — Minneapolis, St. Paul and surrounding cities are looking at some major issues on their ballots this Election Day.
In Minneapolis, the city council, mayor, rent control and the future of policing are all decisions for voters to consider.
In St. Paul, rent control and the mayoral election are two major issues.
Minneapolis city officials say that early ballots have already come in in record numbers, with 12,564 received by Friday, Oct. 22. According to the city, that's higher than the number of early votes cast in municipal elections in both 2017 and 2013, with 10 days left for voters to mail their ballots.
Minneapolis voters can drop off completed mail-in ballots at Election & Voter Services at 980 East Hennepin Avenue in Minneapolis by 3 p.m. on Nov. 2.
If you need more information about mail ballots and drop-off hours in Minneapolis, you can find that here.
This fall, Minneapolis residents will use ranked-choice voting in the election for city council, mayor, board of estimate and taxation and parks and rec board. According to the city's website, Ranked Choice Voting, or RCV, is a method where residents vote for candidates in order of preference, ranking them first, second third, and so on.
This way, if your first choice candidate doesn't win, your vote transfers to your second choice.
If you'd like more information about RCV, Minneapolis is holding a virtual information session at 7 p.m. on Oct. 25, or you can visit the city's website.
Voters in other areas of Hennepin County can drop off ballots at their city or school district election office. More details on early absentee voting in Hennepin County is available on the county's website.
In Ramsey County, similar deadlines for mailing ballots apply for residents of St. Paul and surrounding cities.
Ballots must be received by 8 p.m. on Election Day if sent by mail, or dropped off at a building where an election judge can verify that voter information is correct. There are several locations across the county to return a ballot in-person if you don't want to drop it in the mail. A map of ballot return location can be viewed through the county's website here.
To turn in a ballot on the day of the election, it needs to be taken to the Ramsey County Elections office by 3 p.m.
In St. Paul the mayor's race will also be decided by Ranked Choice Voting. More information about that process can be viewed on the county's website here.