Ramsey County receives achievement award for elections and census engagement
Ramsey County has received a county achievement award from the Association of Minnesota Counties for its engagement strategy for the 2020 Census and the 2020 Presidential Election.
Census data and Ramsey County Elections data showed that there was significant overlap between low-response census tracts in 2010 and election precincts with lower turnout. The county saw an opportunity to double its impact by investing in community partners based in these communities and supporting their efforts to promote both census and election participation. The county quickly determined that it needed to do intensive community engagement with historically undercounted and under-represented communities—communities of color, immigrant and non-English speaking communities, low-income households, youth and others—in order to raise overall census response rates and voter turnout in 2020.
Key strategies in the plan included the development of a civic engagement program, the Census and Voter Engagement Grant initiative, the creation of a network of community partners and the establishment of a Complete Count Committee.
Outcomes of this work included a census self-response rate that jumped from 75.6% in 2010 to 79.1% in 2020. In the 2020 Election, Ramsey County voters achieved a 77.4% turnout, the highest-ever for a presidential election. The county forged valuable relationships with key community partners, whom the county has continued to work with on other important initiatives.
Watch the presentation at the Jan. 18 board meeting