OF TRUTH.

>> NOT TO MY KNOWLEDGE.

>> ELECTION DAY IS A LITTLE MORE THAN A WEEK OUT, BUT SO FAR MANY MINNESOTANS AREN'T WAITING.

THE SECRETARY OF STATE'S OFFICE ANNOUNCED THIS WEEK THAT IT SENT OUT A HALF MILLION BALLOTS WITH OVER 400,000 BALLOTS RETURNED, FAR AHEAD OF THE 022 MID TERMS.

WE'RE JOINED BY JOE MANATEE.

WHEN YOU WERE THE ARCHITECT, DID YOU EVER IMAGINE IT WOULD BE THIS POPULAR.

>> NO, ACTUALLY, MARY, I'M A LITTLE DISAPPOINTED, BECAUSE I HAD ORIGINALLY THOUGHT -- REMEMBER, I WROTE THIS BILL IN 2016 AND I THOUGHT IN 10 OR 15 YEARS, WE SHOULD BE UP AT ABOUT 50%.

WELL, THE ONLY TIME WE GOT THERE WAS DURING THE PANDEMIC WHEN FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE THERE WAS NO OTHER CHOICE.

BUT IT LOOKS LIKE THIS YEAR -- LOOKS LIKE WE COULD GET UP TO ABOUT 800,000 PEOPLE VOTING BY ABSENTEE, WHICH WOULD BE IN THE -- AROUND 30, 31, 32.

SO, YOU KNOW, IN AN IMPERFECT WORLD, I'LL TAKE IT.

>> 800,000, THAT SEEMS LIKE IT'S EYE-POPPING, BUT JUST GIVE IT SOME CONTEXT.

JUST GENERALLY SPEAKING, WAY MORE PEOPLE VOTING ELECTION DAY, RIGHT?

>> ABSOLUTELY RIGHT.

OUR URNOUT WILL BE -- GIVEN THAT CONTROVERSY IS GOOD FOR THE ELECTION BUSINESS.

AND ANY TIME PRESIDENT TRUMP IS INVOLVED, HE'S GOOD FOR BUSINESS.

SO, YOU KNOW, WE'RE PROBABLY LOOKING AT, YOU KNOW B65% OF OUR ELIGIBLE VOTERS.

SO YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, 2 MILLION, $750,000 OR THERE -- THAT'S -- THAT'S A VERY HIGH NUMBER.

FOR AN ELECTION FOR GOVERNOR.

>> YOU TALKED ABOUT BEING THERE AT THE GENESIS OF THIS CONCEPT, BECAUSE WE USED TO HAVE TO HAVE AN EXCUSE.

WHY DID WE WANT TO GO TO NO EXCUSE ABSENTEE, AND THEN TRUE EARLY VOTING IN THE STATE.

>> YOU KNOW, THERE WERE A COUPLE REASONS.

NUMBER ONE, TIMES HAVE CHANGED.

YOU KNOW, WHEN OUR ABSENTEE VOTING LAW WAS WRITTEN, YOU KNOW, OVER A CENTURY AGO, RELATIVELY FEW PEOPLE EVER VOTED BY ABSENTEE BALLOT.

IN FACT, WHEN I STARTED WORKING IN ELECTIONS IN 1984, IF WE HAD 5% OF OUR TOTAL VOTING ABSENTEE, THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN A HIGH NUMBER.

>> WOW.

>> BUT THINGS HAVE CHANGED.

PEOPLE'S LIFESTYLES HAVE CHANGED.

THEY WERE TELLING US WE NEED TO HAVE MORE TIME AND PLACE OPTIONS AND SO OUR -- WHAT WE CALL EARLY VOTING HERE IN MINNESOTA, THAT IS OUR -- THIS IS OUR RESPONSE TO THE -- TO THE INTERESTS OF THE VOTERS THAT WERE TELLING US WE NEED MORE OPTIONS.

>> WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE TEA LEAVES AND YOU SEE THESE NUMBERS FOR EARLY VOTING, IS THERE ANY SPECIFIC PARTY THAT BENEFITS FROM EARLY VOTING?

>> YOU KNOW, I DON'T THINK SO.

AND I DON'T KNOW OF ANY DATA IN ANY STATE THAT WOULD SUGGEST THAT.

AND AS A MATTER OF FACT, HEN WE STARTED TALKING ABOUT THIS CONCEPT, WHICH WAS IN THE '80s AND IT ACTUALLY TOOK US -- WE STARTED TALKING ABOUT IT IN THE '80s, IT WASN'T ENACTED IN UNTIL 2016 SO IT TOOK US A WHILE TO PLOW THAT FIELD.

AND BACK IN THE '80s, A LOT OF THE REPUBLICAN MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATURE WERE PERFECTLY FINE WITH HAVING PEOPLE VOTING EARLY.

WHY?

BECAUSE IN STATES LIKE CALIFORNIA, THEY KNEW HOW TO USE THIS TO THEIR ADVANTAGE TO GET PEOPLE LIKE GEORGE DUE PAGEN AND PETE WILSON ELECTED GOVERNOR.

>> IS THERE ANY TRUTH OR CONCERN, BECAUSE WE WERE TALKING SO MUCH ABOUT FRAUD AND CONCERNS ABOUT -- S EARLY VOTING SAFER OR LESS SAFE WHEN IT COMES TO FRAUD.

>> YOU KNOW, I DON'T THINK SO IT MAKES A DIFFERENCE.

WHETHER YOU'RE STANDING IN OUR OFFICE OR AT ONE OF OUR POLLING PLACES, WE GO THROUGH THE EXACT SAME PROCESS TO DETERMINE WHO YOU ARE AND WE'VE ALREADY ESTABLISHED YOUR ELIGIBILITY WHEN YOU REGISTER TO VOTE.

BY THE TIME YOU WALK INTO -- AGAIN, EITHER A POLLING LACE OF OURS OR NE OF OUR OFFICES, WE HAVE A VERY GOOD IDEA OF WHO YOU ARE AND WHAT YOUR BACKGROUND IS.

AND AS A MATTER OF FACT, NOT TO SPILL THE BEANS HERE, WE PROBABLY KNOW MORE ABOUT YOU THAN YOU WOULD BE COMFORTABLE WITH.

>> THAT'S GOOD TO KNOW.

>> WAIT, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN, JOE?

>> YEAH, DO TELL.

>> REMEMBER, WE HAVE ACCESS TO YOUR DRIVER'S LICENSE RECORD.

WE ALSO HAVE ACCESS TO YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY RECORD.

AND, YOU KNOW -- AND A NUMBER OF OTHER THINGS THAT COME OUR WAY.

>> AND IT'S STILL SECURE.

>> AND IT'S STILL ERY SECURE.

>> OKAY.

>> SO LET ME PUT IT TO YOU THIS WAY.

YOU KNOW, FOR DECADES, OUR STATE LAW HAS ENABLED OUR MAJOR POLITICAL PARTIES TO HAVE A CHALLENGERS AND TO HAVE CHALLENGERS AT THE POLLING PLACES.

I AM TELLING YOU IN THE 35 YEARS I WORKED IN ELECTIONS THAT CHALLENGES AT THE POLLING LACE ARE EXTREMELY RARE.

THEY HARDLY EVER HAPPEN.

AND WHY IS THAT THE CASE?

BECAUSE BOTH PARTIES KNOW, NO MATTER WHAT THEY'RE TELLING YOU, BOTH PARTIES KNOW THAT OUR SYSTEM HERE IS SECURE.

>> WHAT DO YOU MEAN -- WHAT DO YOU MAKE, THEN, THAT MINNEAPOLIS, HENNEPIN COUNTY, RAMSEY COUNTY, THERE WILL BE FEDERAL ELECTION OBSERVERS AT THE POLLS.

>> DOES THAT GIVE YOU PAUSE?

>> NOT REALLY.

WHEN I WAS AT RAMSEY COUNTY, I USED TO APPROVE OBSERVERS TO COME IN, AND I -- YOU KNOW, I WELCOMED THEM.

I HAD NO PROBLEM WITH THAT.

AND SO IF -- YOU KNOW, IF WE WANT TO HAVE PEOPLE HERE FROM JUSTICE OR FROM SOME OTHER DEPARTMENT IN WASHINGTON, I MEAN, IF I WERE STILL WORKING, I WOULD HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH THEM DOING THAT.

YOU KNOW, WE HAVE NOTHING HERE TO HIDE.

AND FRANKLY, THE MORE THEY SEE, I THINK THE MORE THEY KNOW ABOUT OUR SYSTEM, I THINK THE BETTER OFF WE ARE.

>> BUT WHAT ABOUT IMMIGRATION OR I.C.E.

OFFICERS?

THERE'S LIMITS OF WHERE THEY CAN BE.

>> THERE'S TWO DIFFERENT STORIES GOING ON HERE.

FROM THE 100-FOOT MARK OUTSIDE OUR BUILDINGS FROM THERE OUR ELECTION LAW IS WHO CAN COME IN OR NEAR OUR POLLING PLACES.

BUT FROM 100 FEET OUT, THAT IS NO LONGER AN ELECTION MATTER.

THAT IS NOW A LAW ENFORCEMENT SITUATION.

>> OKAY.

SO WHAT DO YOU WANT VOTERS TO KEEP IN MIND IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS?

RIGHT BEFORE THE ELECTION IS HERE.

>> I'LL TELL YOU ONE THING THAT I LEARNED WHEN I WAS AT RAMSEY COUNTY AND THIS THING GOT OFF THE GROUND.

THAT I USED TO GO OUT AND STAND OUT IN THE LINE WITH THE PEOPLE SO I COULD TALK TO THEM AND FIGURE OUT, HY ARE YOU STANDING IN THIS LINE?

AND MONDAY AFTERNOON, WHEN YOU COULD GO TO YOUR POLLING PLACE TOMORROW AND THERE WOULD BE NO LINE?

I NEVER GOT A SATISFACTORY ANSWER TO THAT.

BUT PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, SATURDAY, SUNDAY MORNING, MONDAY, PEOPLE WANT TO VOTE WHEN THEY WANT TO VOTE.

AND I ALWAYS THOUGHT THAT OUR JOB IS TO -- IS TO PROVIDE VOTING TO YOU AT A TIME AND PLACE OF YOUR CHOICE, NOT OF MINE.

>> ONE LAST QUESTION.

WE SET A NEW PRIMARY RECORD.

IS THERE A CHANCE OF A NEW MIDTERM RECORD?

>> YOU KNOW, THAT'S CERTAINLY A POSSIBILITY.

YOU KNOW, WE HAVE THIS INTERESTING CONFLUENCE OF EVENTS HERE.

WE HAVE PRESIDENT TRUMP AND, OF COURSE, YOU KNOW, HE DRIVES INTEREST IN THE ELECTIONS.

WE ALSO FOR ONCE HAVE SOME VERY CLOSE STATEWIDE RACES.

>> OPEN, OPEN, RIGHT?

>> AND, AGAIN, CLOSE RACES, A LOT OF CONTROVERSY.

THAT IS GOOD FOR BUSINESS.

>> JOE