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LIVE UPDATES

Live updates: Voters narrowing fields of candidates in primary election

Published August 11, 2026 at 6:45 AM CDT
Voting booths and voters in Aitkin Public Library during the Special Election held on April 14, 2026 in Aitkin.
Lorie Shaull
/
KAXE
Voting booths and voters in Aitkin Public Library during the Special Election held on April 14, 2026 in Aitkin.

KAXE's News Team shares live updates from the polls across Northern Minnesota as voters cast ballots for Senate, governor, sheriff and other races.

Minnesotans are choosing candidates for governor and U.S. Senate in the first election without an incumbent in years.

Northern Minnesotans are also narrowing the field for some county offices, city races in Bemidji, Hibbing, Chisholm and Cloquet, and Red Lake School Board.

KAXE's Primary Election Guide can be found here.

Voting 411

Primary Election Day is here

Posted August 11, 2026 at 7:00 AM CDT

Happy Primary Election Day, Minnesota!

Most polling places in the state open at 7 a.m. today. All are open until 8 p.m. As long as you're in line by 8 p.m., you can vote, even if you do not reach the front of the line until after 8.

(In state and federal elections, towns with less than 500 residents are not required to open until 10 a.m. but most choose to open at 7 a.m. anyway. See a list of towns here with polling places that will open later than 7 a.m.)

Aren't registered to vote yet? You can register when you vote on Election Day. You’ll need to bring one proof of residence, like your driver’s license or a photo ID paired with a bill or lease. Click here for exactly what you'll need to bring.

The Minnesota Secretary of State's Office reported more than 300,000 Minnesotans had already voted as of 9 a.m. Monday, Aug. 10. This is the highest number of absentee and mail ballots cast before a primary in a non-presidential election year.

Local election officials accepted 206,196 absentee and mail ballots for the primary. Of the accepted ballots, 99,053 have been returned by mail and 107,143 ballots were cast in-person. Additional absentee voting statistics are available online.