Secretary of State Steve Simon was on the road last week, making stops in Scott, Le Sueur, Blue Earth, Nicollet, Sibley, and McCleod Counties. He travelled to talk about business services, domestic violence prevention and to talk about the upcoming 2016 election to a variety of people, including students.

On Thursday February 18, Simon hit the road again  making stops in St. Peter and the Mankato area. He discussed with local officials and college students his work to make it as easy as possible for all eligible Minnesotans to vote in 2016, as well as the importance of participating in the Precinct Caucuses on March 1.

Simon stopped to talk with Mankato area business leaders at the Greater Mankato Growth’s Public Affairs Forum  Series Luncheon, as well as meet with local chambers in Shakopee and Gaylord.

These meetings were an opportunity to get feedback from local chambers and business leaders, as well as to talk about the work being done to help streamline service so business owners can spend more time running their small businesses and less time shuffling paperwork.

Additionally, Secretary Simon highlighted his partnership with the St. Cloud State University School of Public Affairs Research Institute to produce customized economic analyses, reviews and forecasts of Minnesota on a quarterly and regional basis.

Along with meeting Mankato business leaders, Secreatry of State Steve Simon also made a stop at Gustavus to talk about the election and other issues with Gustavus students.

“This year is going to be a big election year in Minnesota and Secretary Simon has made increasing civic engagement amongst young people a top priority,” Communications Director for Minnesota, Ryan Furlong said.

In addition to discussing the 2016 election and Precinct Caucuses, Simon highlighted new voter outreach efforts and the importance of getting involved and voting.

Simon spoke to the Feminist Political Thought class about his role as the Secretary of the State of Minnesota. He explained how his job is to protect, defend, and strengthen the right to vote, and to make it as easy as possible for everyone eligible to vote do just that. Simon noted that Minnesota has one of the highest voter turnouts in the country, and it’s a result of our culture, which rewards civic participation of all kinds.

“Our vote is our voice and all roads lead to the ballot box,” Secretary of State, Steve Simon said.

Many students asked Simon questions regarding issues and decisions he’s made. One question posed was about the failed 2012 effort to implement a voter ID law in Minnesota and his motivation for implementing the law, which in turn, makes voting harder for the elderly, young, people of color, and lower-income voters, however, he declined to speculate on the motivations for such a law. Even so, Gusties enjoyed their time asking him questions.

“It was a cool opportunity to sit down with Secretary of State Steve Simon and have a conversation about voting, particularly about the low turnout among young voters. It was great to see that Gusties at the meeting didn’t hold back when they had an opportunity to ask Simon questions. Luckily for him he seemed able to hold his own, and he gave us good information about the upcoming caucuses and the election process in general,” Junior Political Science major Amy Leininger said.

Secretary of State Steve Simon also focused his meeting with the students on low voter turnout among young people. Only 20% of young people go to the polls. Commenting on the disillusionment that young people feel about the political system.

“Failure to vote isn’t an act of rebellion, it’s an act of surrender,” Simon said.

He noted that 800,000 Minnesotans are eligible to vote, but don’t do so. Simon also discussed the “no excuse” absentee ballot that he worked on implementing at the Capitol. It allows voters to register to vote online and also vote from home.