Faribault County ballot misprint switched parties of legislative candidates

County officials are taking measures to correct a misprint that affected 17 ballots issued in Faribault County, the Minnesota Secretary of State’s Office said Friday, the first day of early voting for the Nov. 5 election.

Ballots in House District 23A in Faribault County switched the parties for Rep. Peggy Bennett, a Republican, and challenger Joe Staloch, a DFLer, according to a news release from Secretary of State Steve Simon’s office. The error did not affect ballots in Freeborn, Steele and Waseca counties, which the district also includes.

In a statement, Bennett said she learned of the error when a constituent contacted her and asked her when she had switched parties.

Staloch, in a Facebook post, called the error unfortunate but urged voters to remain calm as ballots are corrected.

County officials “will be pursuing corrective action through the courts,” including instructing voters who have received and returned ballots how to get their vote correctly counted, the release said.

The Secretary of State’s Office said counties prepare and proof their own ballots.

“In every election, despite the best efforts of our hard-working county election officials, mistakes happen. Our office is thankful for the swift action of Faribault County officials after learning of the error and is committed to partnering with them where appropriate to ensure this mistake is remedied for all impacted voters as soon as possible,” the release said.

As of Sunday, the error had been corrected on the sample ballot feature on the Secretary of State’s website.