DULUTH -- Minnesota secretary of state candidates agree voters should be allowed to continue registering on Election Day, but split over whether photo identification should be a voting requirement.
Secretary of State Mary Kiffmeyer, a Republican seeking a third four-year term, said during a debate Saturday in Duluth that asking voters to show a photo identification card, such as a driver's license, is a "common sense" way to maintain integrity in Minnesota elections.
Democrat Mark Ritchie, who in 2004 led a nationwide voter registration initiative, said requiring photo identification would disenfranchise poor citizens, seniors and college students who might not have access to documents required to get a picture identification card.
Forcing voters to prove their identity with photo identification is nothing more than a poll tax, Independence Party candidate Joel Spoonheim said.
"It's wrong. It's bad. It's unconstitutional," Spoonheim said during a debate among the four secretary of state candidates.
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Bruce Kennedy, who's waging a small campaign as the only candidate without a party affiliation, said it's a partisan issue used by Republicans and Democrats to divide voters. He said the proposal stands little chance of passage.
"It's not going to happen in Minnesota for a while, so relax," he said.
The hour-long debate was sponsored by the Center for Advocacy and Political Leadership at University of Minnesota Duluth and Forum Communications Company.
Much of the discussion focused on voter access and whether the candidates support a variety of proposals designed to increase turnout and make it easier for people to cast a ballot.
Kiffmeyer said she has worked hard over eight years to get young adults involved in elections and has seen an increase in turnout among voters age 18 to 24. She promotes programs that expose youth to the polling place because they then will be more likely to vote when they turn 18, she said.
Ritchie said the state should examine whether people's lifestyles leave them less likely to vote. He said he could support allowing voters to cast their ballots early, rather than being limited to the traditional election day.
There are a few issues on which the candidates agreed. For instance, they all said the state's voter turnout for primary and local elections is too low, sometimes in the single digits. They also expressed concern a proposal to lower the voting age to 16.
They split, however, on whether instant run-off voting should be used in Minnesota. Kennedy, who is making that his main issue, said instant run-off voting allows voters to rank candidates rather than pick just one and guarantees that a winner is chosen by a majority of the votes.
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Ritchie and Spoonheim said they support the idea.
Kiffmeyer opposes instant run-off voting, saying it would confuse voters and that Minnesota should focus on ensuring fair elections under the current system.
"It takes a long time to explain it" to voters, she said of the alternative approach.
