Luck of the Draw Will Now Pick Winners in Tied Minnesota Elections

When the polls closed on Tuesday, November 3, Minnesota had once again done what Minnesota does best on Election Day: show up.

More than 2.8 million Minnesotans cast ballots in the midterm election, breaking the previous midterm participation record set in 2018. That year, the state topped out at about 2.6 million votes. On election night, Minnesota led the nation in voter turnout rate.

As final counts rolled in, Maine edged ahead by the slimmest of margins. The University of Florida's Election Lab put Minnesota's turnout at 65.16%, just behind Maine's 65.78%. Only six states cleared the 60% mark.

The cost of living, data centers, and immigration enforcement were among the issues driving voters to the polls across Minnesota.

However, while millions of people voted, it turns out a handful of races came down to nothing at all.

Every Vote Counts Was Not Just a Slogan This Year

We hear it every election cycle. Your vote matters. Every vote counts. Don't stay home. It's easy to roll your eyes when you're one of nearly three million ballots. This year, though, Minnesota delivered the proof.

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According to unofficial results, seven Minnesota elections ended in exact ties. Over a dozen more were decided by a single vote. In Kenneth, a city council seat went to Cory Davis by a 9-8 count over Amber M. Davis. In Henriette, the mayor's race finished 12-11.

It isn't just small towns, either. In the Moorhead-area State Senate District 4 race, just four votes separated Rob Kupec and Austin Peterson out of more than 36,000 cast.

A Minnesota Mayor Will Be Drawn From a Bag

The biggest tie came in the Twin Cities suburb of Spring Lake Park. There, Mayor Robert Nelson and challenger Halyn Roth each earned 1,401 votes. Another 13 people wrote in a candidate, which likely made the difference in creating the deadlock.

So what happens now? Minnesota law says a tied race must be decided by lot, meaning a game of chance. The City Council will canvass the results at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, November 9. If the tie holds, City Administrator Daniel Buchholtz said the winner will be chosen by drawing a name out of a bag. The public is invited to watch.

That may not be the final word. The candidate whose name isn't drawn can request a publicly funded recount. The deadline is 5 p.m. on November 16, with a recount tentatively set for November 17 at the Anoka County Courthouse.

A Bag in One Town, Possibly a Coin Flip in Another

Here's where it gets even stranger. Minnesota law only says a tie must be broken "by lot," and it leaves the method up to local officials.

According to the League of Minnesota Cities, that could mean drawing names or flipping a coin. So two tied Minnesota cities may settle their races two completely different ways in the same week.

In Spring Lake Park, it's a name pulled from a bag on Monday. About an hour south, in Pine Island, incumbent Delana Weis and Dominick Pahl tied at 711 votes apiece for a city council seat. City staff says that race will come down to a coin flip or a name drawn from a hat at a special meeting on November 12.

Think about that for a second. Two candidates in two Minnesota towns each knocked on doors, put up yard signs, and earned the exact same trust from voters. One will find out their fate from a bag. The other may be calling heads or tails.

Other Minnesota Towns Still Have to Decide

Other ties include the St. Clair School Board, Jackson City Council, Foreston City Council, and a Shible Township supervisor seat. Dalton has a rare three-way tie, with three city council candidates sitting at 35 votes apiece.

Those communities haven't announced how they'll pick a winner yet. That means a deck of cards, a hat, or something else could still join the list.

If this sounds unusual, it has happened before. In 2018, a Manhattan Beach mayor's race was decided by a nine of diamonds. In Wrenshall, a 2024 tied mayoral race was settled by pulling a name from a hat. And in Maplewood in 2018, a coin-flip winner went on to lose a hand recount by five votes.

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Is Luck the Fairest Way to Settle It?

There are two ways to look at this. Supporters of the drawing say it's quick, cheap, and neutral. Neither candidate has an edge, and the community can move on without the cost of a special election.

On the other hand, critics argue that leaving an elected office to chance feels unsatisfying after voters did their part. Some would prefer a runoff, or at least a guaranteed recount first, so the outcome reflects the ballot box instead of a bag.

What do you think? Should a tied election be settled by a drawing, or should voters get another say?

Either way, the lesson is the same. The next time you wonder if your single vote really matters, remember Spring Lake Park, Pine Island, and Dalton. In each of them, one more person showing up would have changed everything.