Election Day is one date on the calendar, but eligible Minnesotans do not all meet it under the same circumstances. Some work long shifts. Some prefer to vote before Election Day. Some are 16 or 17 and preparing for their first election. Some have a felony conviction but are no longer incarcerated. 

The legal answer is not one broad promise of access. Minnesota law addresses each situation with specific eligibility rules, timelines and procedures. 

More than one way to vote before Election Day 

Minnesota voters can vote before Election Day in two related but distinct ways. 

Absentee voting is available during the 46 days before an election, by mail or in person. An in-person absentee ballot still goes through absentee procedures before it is counted. 

For federal, state and county elections, early voting begins 18 days before Election Day. The voter receives a ballot, marks it and inserts it directly into a ballot counter, much like at a polling place. For the November 3, 2026, general election, absentee voting began September 18 and early voting begins October 16. 

Minnesota offers 46 days of absentee voting, but the newer early-voting process occupies the final 18 days. 

Options for different circumstances 

Voters who regularly prefer absentee voting may join Minnesota’s permanent absentee list, which sends an absentee ballot before each election for which they are eligible. The voter must choose to join the list. The status ends if the voter is no longer registered in Minnesota, and a voter can ask to be removed. 

Minnesotans who are 16 or 17 may also preregister to vote. Preregistration does not lower the voting age. Election officials process the application so the person becomes registered on their 18th birthday. 

“I signed up at 16 because many of my classmates had been talking about it. It seemed like a really good opportunity to understand how voting works in my community and so I could explain it to my friends later on, too.” 

— Oletha, Poll Book and Registration Specialist / Election Judge, City of Minneapolis 

Minnesota law also restores voting rights after a felony conviction during any period when the person is not incarcerated for that offense. A person on probation or parole may vote if they otherwise meet Minnesota’s eligibility requirements. A person currently incarcerated for a felony conviction may not. 

Work schedules are addressed, too. Eligible employees have the right to be absent from work for the time necessary to vote and return, on Election Day or during the period allowed for in-person voting before Election Day, without a wage deduction or penalty. Employers may coordinate when workers leave, but they may not refuse or interfere with the right. 

Access still comes with rules 

These options change how and when eligible Minnesotans can vote, not who is eligible. Minnesota voters generally must be U.S. citizens, at least 18 on Election Day, Minnesota residents for at least 20 days, not currently incarcerated for a felony conviction and not under a court order revoking their voting rights. 

That is the useful connection between access and election rules: More ways to participate still operate inside defined legal boundaries. 

Check current dates, locations and voting rules at mnvotes.gov.