Lower Court Holding in Minnesota Voters Alliance v. Mansky
Decision of the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals
Minnesota Statute Section 211B.11 prohibits wearing a “political badge, political button, or other political insignia … at or about the polling place on primary or election day.” To help determine which materials were political, Minnesota election officials distributed an Election Day policy with examples including: “Issue oriented material designed to influence or impact voting” and “Material promoting a group with recognizable political views (such as the Tea Party, MoveOn.org, and so on).” Election judges were instructed to ask anyone wearing an item violating the policy to remove or cover it. If a person refused, the election official should allow the…
