Minnesota's Secretary of State Mark Ritchie told WCCO on Sunday that St. Louis County could delay statewide Election Day results more than previous elections. Ritchie said three write-in candidates looking to replace former state Rep. Kerry Gauthier will have to be hand counted. “We estimate that this may go to 1 a.m., 2 a.m., perhaps a little bit longer, in the morning,” he said.

Secretary of State Mark Ritchie said that he expects about 3 million Minnesota residents to turn out at the polls during Election Day Tuesday, which is on par with the roughly 80 percent of registered state voters who cast ballots in recent presidential elections.

Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie's changes to the title that will appear over the marriage amendment on the fall ballot came under attack in papers filed with the state Supreme Court. Lawyers for Republican lawmakers and other backers of the amendment say Ritchie's changes will make voters less likely to approve the Constitutional amendment. They also argue that it's up to the Legislature - not the Secretary of State - to write the title. A hearing before the court is coming up later this month.

News that Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie has been uninvited to speak at a south Minneapolis Catholic church may be premature, according to church officials. Ritchie was scheduled to talk before mass on Aug. 12 at St. Joan of Arc. A spokesman for the archdiocese had reportedly said that invitation was being rescinded over Ritchie's efforts to change wording of the proposed marriage amendment.

Secretary of State Mark Ritchie has submitted the title “Limiting the Status of Marriage to Opposite Sex Couples" to Attorney General Lori Swanson for final approval, the Associated Press reports. Supporters of the constitutional amendment want it titled, "Recognition of Marriage Solely Between One Man and One Woman."

Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie is changing the title of the constitutional amendment to “Changes to in-person & absentee voting & voter registration; provisional ballots." Sponsors of the measure, seeking to require voters to show a photo ID before casting a ballot, want the question titled "Photo Identification Required for Voting." Ritchie is being sued for changing the title on the marriage amendment question.

After consultation with archdiocese officials, a Roman Catholic church in Minneapolis has rescinded a speaking invitation for Secretary of State Mark Ritchie, who is at the center of controversies surrounding constitutional amendments on this fall's ballot.