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Record of Proceedings

Rochester City Council Canvassing Board Special Meeting – November 13, 2024

City Council — Wednesday, November 13, 2024
BodyRochester, Minnesota
SessionCity Council
DateWednesday, November 13, 2024
StatusFILED
Video Record
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Transcript — Verbatim
0:13

Oh, we had it all set up so you could be a vote.

0:20

Maybe I should just keep sitting here.

0:22

That's not interesting.

0:22

You can do either recording in progress.

0:38

Very full.

0:42

All right, welcome everyone.

0:43

We are starting today with our um elections canvassing board meeting, and it will be brief, and we have the city clerk here to start us off.

0:53

But first of all, I will officially call the meeting to order and we need to do roll.

0:57

Right.

0:58

Ms.

0:58

Caseel, would you please call roll councilmember Keene?

1:05

Here.

1:06

Councilmember Bransford.

1:08

Here.

1:08

Councilmember Wall is absent.

1:11

Councilmember Kirkpatrick?

1:12

Here.

1:13

Councilmember Palmer.

1:14

Here.

1:15

Councilmember Dennis.

1:18

I see her entering.

1:19

Okay.

1:21

Council President Carlson.

1:23

Here.

1:23

And Mayor Norton is absent.

1:26

All right.

1:26

Thank you for that.

1:29

Just ask for a quick motion to approve the order of the agenda.

1:32

So moved.

1:33

Second.

1:34

Any discussion?

1:35

All in favor, say aye.

1:36

Aye.

1:37

All opposed say nay.

1:39

Motion carries.

1:40

All right.

1:40

We are moving on to our reports and recommendations, which is the canvas of the November 5th, 2024 election results.

1:47

And I will turn it over to our city clerk, Kelly Geisler.

1:49

Go ahead.

1:50

Thank you, Council President.

1:52

Am I okay at this distance from the mic?

1:54

Yes.

1:54

Perfect.

1:55

Okay.

1:56

Thank you, Council President, Council members.

1:59

Uh like you said, we're here today to canvas the results of the November 5th general election.

2:05

Just a quick procedural note for all of you.

2:08

Once we complete this, we'll take a short break, and I'll have those who are gonna sign, sign, we'll sign the resolution, and that'll also give our team a chance to do the A V switch over for the study session, and then you all can get started with the study session.

2:23

Uh first of all, we're just gonna take a quick uh spin through the numbers.

2:27

Um and these are the numbers that you'll also see in our resolution that are required to be reported out to the Secretary of State.

2:34

Uh so voter turnout was uh we had seven these six thousand two hundred forty-eight registered voters at 7 a.m.

2:42

on election day.

2:43

There were 65,265 total votes cast, 6,167 persons registered at the polls on election day, 27,350 regular military and overseas absentee and mail ballots were cast, 178 federal office only absentee ballots were cast, and one presidential absentee ballot was cast.

3:07

And uh we had uh an incredible 45 polling locations with 825 election judges uh working on what for all intents and purposes was a pretty uh great day as long as far as election administration goes, very smooth.

3:24

Uh the results of the election uh came out as council member at large, uh Randy Schubring, Ward 2, Nick Miller, Ward 4, Andrew Friedrich's, Ward 6, Dan Doring.

3:36

Wonderful, got it right.

3:38

And that's really it.

3:39

When before I wrap up, I just want to say a quick thank you to all of our city partners that help us in this effort.

3:47

Uh our parks and maintenance and public work teammates that help us with signage and help us with golf carts and all sorts of different things, uh putting out cones, Olmstead County elections, who is our uh partner in this effort.

4:01

Uh RPD and emergency management, they spun up an incredible command station that day, and even though um we didn't really uh have any events to note, we were ready, and I love readiness uh and quiet when they go together.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Election Procedures█████████████████████████████████████████████81%
Public Safety███████████19%
Summary of Proceedings

Rochester City Council Canvassing Board Special Meeting – November 13, 2024

The Rochester City Council convened as the Elections Canvassing Board on November 13, 2024, at 3:30 p.m. to certify the results of the November 5, 2024 General Election. The meeting was brief, lasting 14 minutes, and focused solely on adopting a resolution declaring the election outcomes for Councilmember-at-large and three ward representatives. Councilmember Molly Dennis voted against certification, citing unresolved residency concerns about one candidate.

Discussion Items

  • Canvass of the November 5, 2024, Election Results – City Clerk Kelly Geistler presented the election statistics: 76,248 registered voters at 7 a.m. on election day; 65,265 total votes cast; 6,167 persons registered at the polls; 27,350 regular, military, overseas, absentee, and mail ballots; 178 federal‑office‑only absentee ballots; 1 presidential absentee ballot. The election operated at 45 polling locations staffed by 825 election judges. The declared winners were:

    • Councilmember-at-large: Randy Schubring
    • Ward 2: Nick Miller
    • Ward 4: Andrew Friedrichs
    • Ward 6: Dan Doring

  • Councilmember Patrick Keane asked about contested elections; Clerk Geistler explained that canvassing is a ministerial function required by state law and must occur before any contest can proceed. Councilmember Dennis raised concerns about a candidate’s residency, stating she had researched statutes and spoken with the Secretary of State’s office. She argued that a sworn affidavit of residency may have been violated and that insufficient investigation had been conducted. She said she could not ethically vote to certify without knowing the election was lawful.

Key Outcomes

  • Resolution No. 237‑24 was adopted by a vote of 5‑1‑1 (Approved: Brooke Carlson, Shaun Palmer, Kelly Rae Kirkpatrick, Mark Bransford, Patrick Keane; Nay: Molly Dennis; Absent: Norman Wahl). The resolution certifies the election results and directs the City Clerk to sign the abstract report for submission to the Secretary of State.
  • The meeting adjourned at 3:44 p.m.

Meeting Transcript

Oh, we had it all set up so you could be a vote. Maybe I should just keep sitting here. That's not interesting. You can do either recording in progress. Very full. All right, welcome everyone. We are starting today with our um elections canvassing board meeting, and it will be brief, and we have the city clerk here to start us off. But first of all, I will officially call the meeting to order and we need to do roll. Right. Ms. Caseel, would you please call roll councilmember Keene? Here. Councilmember Bransford. Here. Councilmember Wall is absent. Councilmember Kirkpatrick? Here. Councilmember Palmer. Here. Councilmember Dennis. I see her entering. Okay. Council President Carlson. Here. And Mayor Norton is absent. All right. Thank you for that. Just ask for a quick motion to approve the order of the agenda. So moved. Second. Any discussion? All in favor, say aye. Aye. All opposed say nay. Motion carries. All right. We are moving on to our reports and recommendations, which is the canvas of the November 5th, 2024 election results. And I will turn it over to our city clerk, Kelly Geisler. Go ahead. Thank you, Council President. Am I okay at this distance from the mic? Yes. Perfect. Okay. Thank you, Council President, Council members. Uh like you said, we're here today to canvas the results of the November 5th general election. Just a quick procedural note for all of you. Once we complete this, we'll take a short break, and I'll have those who are gonna sign, sign, we'll sign the resolution, and that'll also give our team a chance to do the A V switch over for the study session, and then you all can get started with the study session. Uh first of all, we're just gonna take a quick uh spin through the numbers. Um and these are the numbers that you'll also see in our resolution that are required to be reported out to the Secretary of State.

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