More than 100 friends of democracy gathered on July 23 from 6:30 - 8:00 pm at Columbia Park for the launch of "We Choose Us," a collaborative campaign mobilizing to build a multiracial democracy. Clean Elections Minnesota is part of this exciting new campaign along...
In a country that can't successfully require citizens to wear disease-preventing masks, get vaccinated against a deadly virus, or enact modest gun-safety laws, mandatory voting might seem a bridge too far--even if it leads to a better place. But the practice is...
A few months shy of 234 years ago the US Constitution established one federal court, the Supreme Court of the United States.
To be an American is not about place, race or heritage. It is about knowing that freedom and rights are God-given gifts that we dare not take for granted and that we must always fight to preserve and expand. It is to believe that all men and women are created equal,...
Chair Nelson, members – Clean Elections Minnesota is a nonpartisan nonprofit that supports fair elections in our state. We support H. F. 3666, offered by Rep. Emma Greenman, that prohibits intimidation of and interference with election officials. The bill applies to...
Mary Hartnett joins Clean Elections Minnesota as our first Executive Director, upcoming events, voting process changes
Clean Elections Minnesota is very pleased to announce that Mary Hartnett will become our first Executive Director, effective February 14, 2022. With a strong background as a nonprofit executive, Mary brings a wealth of leadership experience to the position. She has...
A recent letter to the Minneapolis Star Tribune questioned the need for Federal voting rights legislation. The system of electing presidents, in the writer’s view, has worked for more than two centuries; “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”
Nothing gives a political cynic more delight than repeating, with a world-weary sigh, a version of Lord Acton’s famous line, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”
To start 2022 right, Clean Elections MN sponsored, along with a host of co-hosts, a live Zoom and Facebook event, "Protecting Our Vote" January 12. Special guests Senator Amy Klobuchar and Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon responded to questions crafted from...
Development - 2021 Overview & Strategic Plan 9 13 21 (1)
Clean Elections Minnesota invites you to join the League of Women Voters of Minnesota in saying “Thank You” to our local election officials for standing on the front lines of our democracy. Together, state, county and city staff work with over 30,000 paid and...
On September 28, Peter Wattson explained redistricting--the process of drawing new political maps based on population changes determined by the 2020 census. Responding to questions posed by journalist and author Lori Sturdevant, Wattson clarified the importance of the...
Chair George Beck's Testimony on HF 2594 – Few things are as important to democracy as a fair redistricting process as our sister state, Wisconsin, has illustrated. Wisconsin is one of the most gerrymandered states in our nation due to the manipulation of voting...
H.R. 1: For the People Act H.R. 1, the For the People Act, will make it easier to vote, take big money out of politics, and clean up corruption in government. Among its provisions, the legislation would expand access to voting: EXPANDS VOTER REGISTRATION We don’t have...
An essay about Clean Elections MN by George Beck appears in the May 2021 issue of the Minnesota League of Women Voters' "All Member News." Scroll down to find CEM Chair Beck's essay in the "Partner Spotlight." On the way there, you can stop to learn about Asian...
Last Fall we hosted a fascinating conversation with Nancy MacLean, author of Democracy in Chains, a finalist for the National Book Award, about the decades-long campaign the well-financed radical right has conducted to subvert our democracy. On May 19th of this year...
Saturday, April 10, 10 a.m. CST. This event with Richard Painter was the first in a series of American Promise sponsored events on Big Election Spenders. More information will appear here as it becomes available. If you missed Richard Painter in real time, go here for...
May 4, 2021, Noon - 1 p.m. CST: Clean Elections Chair George Beck participated in a virtual event, a panel discussion of the influence of money in our politics. Also participating, Associate Professor Kathryn Pearson. The moderator was Ricardo Lopez of the Minnesota...
HR 1 - Minn.
April 13, 7:00-8:00 pm CST: David Litt, Obama speechwriter and author most recently of Democracy in One Book or Less--How It Works, Why It Doesn't, and Why Fixing It Is Easier Than You Think, was interviewed by Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and author, Dave Hage....
FairVote Minnesota and Clean Elections MN launched a virtual Democracy Town Hall Series beginning on February 21 at 4 pm to explore solutions and provide opportunities for voters across Minnesota to hear from state leaders on critical issues including Ranked Choice...
Testimony – House State Government committee – 1/28/21 – HF9 Chair Nelson, members, my name is George Beck. I am a retired administrative law judge, former Chair of the Minnesota Campaign Finance Board, and presently Chair of Clean Elections Minnesota, a non-partisan,...
Voter ID and Provisional balloting – SF 173 - Testimony to Senate State Government Finance and Policy and Elections Committee on Jan. 27, 2021. Madam Chair, members, my name is George Beck. I am a retired administrative law judge, a former chair of the Minnesota...