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Judge Lindman Orders the Release of Absentee Ballot Data

By Eric L. Lipman

By an Order issued earlier today, Judge Dale B. Lindman, of the District Court for Ramsey County, Minnesota, entered an injunction directing the disclosure of ?the names and addresses of all persons who submitted absentee ballots [in Ramsey County] in connection with the general election of November 4, 2008, but whose absentee ballots were rejected or otherwise not counted.?

The Al Franken for Senate Committee had earlier sued under the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act to obtain release of this data. Agreeing that disclosure of this information was both appropriate and required, Judge Lindman wrote: ?[T]he names of absentee voters private until the close of voting, at which time the general rule set forth in Minn. Stat. § 13.03, subd. 1 again applies, and the data are no longer classified as anything other than public data.?

The District Court?s complete analysis is accessible here.

Full post as published by Within the Scope on November 19, 2008 (boomark / email).