Join our Boards & Commissions Leadership Institute (BCLI) on Thursday, Sept. 10 at 6 pm CT for an Issue Series session on free and fair elections for the upcoming midterms.
Minnesota has one of the most active participation rates of voter engagement in the country. This August, we proved that again by breaking a new record: For the first time in history, more than 1 million Minnesotans voted in a primary. This is 25% of the eligible voter population!
Across the nation, there is a lot of uncertainty around voter intimidation, restricting methods of voting (such as mail-in ballots), and federal attempts to access state voter rolls, among other efforts to sow distrust in our electoral systems. How do we ensure all Minnesotans who are eligible to vote and wish to exercise their rights can do so in free and fair elections?
Sign up to learn ways we can continue to partake in our most sacred civic duties in a democracy. Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon and his staff will join BCLI to discuss how to get out to vote safely this November.
Register here
Guest Speakers
Melanie Hazelip
Melanie Hazelip is the Voter Outreach Director for the Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State. She has done voter and civic engagement work since 2016 in a variety of capacities. She believes democracy is not a spectator sport; we all must participate. In her work, she tries to make voting accessible to all eligible Minnesotans. She spends her days talking to advocates around the state who share the same goals. She lives in Saint Paul with her husband, three kids, and two black cats.
Steve Simon
Steve Simon is Minnesota’s 22nd Secretary of State, sworn into office on Jan. 5, 2015. As Minnesota’s chief elections administrator, he pledged in his inaugural address to “work with anyone, of any political affiliation, from any part of our state” to protect, defend, and strengthen the right to vote in Minnesota.
As Secretary of State, he partners with township, city, and county officials to organize elections on behalf of Minnesota’s nearly four million eligible voters, and to ensure that the election system is fair. Simon also oversees a wide range of services for Minnesota businesses and administers the “Safe at Home” address confidentiality program for people whose personal safety is at risk, often due to physical abuse or threats.
His goals as Minnesota’s Secretary of State are straightforward: expand access to voting, remove barriers to voting, make business services as streamlined as possible, strengthen protections for victims of domestic violence and, most importantly, be a Secretary of State for all Minnesotans.
Before being elected, Simon served in the Minnesota House of Representatives for 10 years representing the communities of St. Louis Park and Hopkins. Simon and his wife Leia live in Hopkins with their two children, Hannah and Noah.
This virtual event is free and open to the public. You do not need to be in our BCLI cohort to attend. As part of the Boards & Commissions Leadership Institute, Nexus hosts two Thursday Night Issue Series sessions that include local speakers and facilitated discussions related to service on public boards and our issue areas: economic development, health, housing, transit, and workforce development.