How felons and teens can register to vote in Minnesota

(ABC 6 News) – During the latest legislative session, Minnesota lawmakers expanded voting access.

They did this by allowing felons who’ve served their sentences to vote and, giving 16 and 17-year-olds the opportunity to pre-register to vote.

We spoke with the director of the Olmsted County Property Records and Licensing Office on what this means for teens in Olmsted County.

“If you are 16 and you get a drivers license then you will be automatically registered to vote,” Mary Blair-Hoeft said.

For felons, the process of registering to vote wont be any different than someone who hasn’t been convicted of a felony.

“The registration for them should be the same as it is for everyone else except for now the new forms had to be updated and changed so that they weren’t excluded,” Blair-Hoeft explained.

Experts estimate the change in state law will expand voting access to more than 55,000 Minnesotans.