Minnesota's Virtual Meeting and Electronic Voting Statutes

Electronic Voting Statute

Sec. 8. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 515B.3-110, is amended to read:

(a) At any meeting of the association an owner or the holder of the owner's proxy 
shall be entitled to cast the vote which is allocated to the unit. If there is more than one 
owner of a unit, only one of the owners may cast the vote. If the owners of a unit fail to 
agree and notify the association as to who shall cast the vote, the vote shall not be cast. 
Any provision in the articles of incorporation, bylaws, declaration, or other document 
restricting a unit owner's right to vote, or affecting quorum requirements, by reason of 
nonpayment of assessments, or a purported violation of any provision of the documents 
governing the common interest community, shall be void.

(b) If permitted by the articles or bylaws, votes allocated to a unit may be cast 
pursuant to a proxy executed by the unit owner entitled to cast the vote for that unit. The 
board may specify the form of proxy and proxy rules, consistent with law.


(c) If authorized by the statute under which the association is created, and to the extent not limited or prohibited by the articles of incorporation, bylaws, or declaration, the entire vote on any single issue (except the election of directors), or issues may be taken by electronic means or by mailed ballots, subject to

  •  (i) any prohibition or requirement contained in the articles of incorporation, bylaws, or declaration and 

    (ii) any requirements 
of the statute under which the association is created in compliance with the applicable 
statute, in lieu of holding a meeting of the unit owners. Such a vote shall have the force 
and effect of a vote taken at a meeting; provided, that the total votes cast are at least equal 
to the votes required for a quorum. The board shall set a voting period within which the 
ballots or other voting response must be returned received by the association, which period 
shall be not less than ten 15 nor more than 30 45 days after the date of mailing or hand 
delivery of the ballots notice of the vote and voting procedures to the unit owners. The 
board of directors shall provide written notice of the results of the vote to the members 
unit owners within 30 days after the expiration of the voting period. All requirements in 
this chapter, the declaration or the bylaws for a meeting of the members unit owners, or 
being present in person, shall be deemed satisfied by a vote taken by mail in compliance 
with the requirements of this section. The voting procedures authorized by this section 
shall not be used in combination with a vote taken at a meeting of the unit owners. However, voting by electronic means and mailed ballot may be combined if each is done in compliance with the applicable statute.

(d) The articles of incorporation or bylaws may authorize class voting by unit owners 
for directors or on specified issues affecting the class. Class voting may only be used to 
address operational, physical, or administrative differences within the common interest 
community. A declarant shall not use class voting to evade any limit imposed on declarants 
by this chapter and units shall not constitute a class because they are owned by a declarant.


(e) The declaration or bylaws may provide that votes on specified matters affecting 
the common interest community be cast by lessees or secured parties rather than unit 
owners; provided that 

  • (i) the provisions of subsections (a), (b), and (c) apply to those 
persons as if they were unit owners; 

    (ii) unit owners who have so delegated their votes 
to other persons may not cast votes on those specified matters; 

    (iii) lessees or secured 
parties are entitled to notice of meetings, access to records, and other rights respecting 
those matters as if they were unit owners, and (iv) the lessee or secured party has filed 
satisfactory evidence of its interest with the secretary of the association prior to the 
meeting. Unit owners must also be given notice, in the manner provided in section 
515B.3-108(b), of meetings at which lessees or secured parties are entitled to vote.


(f) No votes allocated to a unit owned by the association may be cast nor counted 
toward a quorum.

450.2441 Voting generally.

Sec. 441. (1) Each outstanding share or member is entitled to 1 vote on each matter submitted to a vote, unless otherwise provided pursuant to section 303 or 304. A vote may be cast either orally or in writing, unless otherwise provided in the bylaws. In addition, the bylaws may provide for voting by electronic transmission.

Virtual Meeting Statute

The Minnesota Common Interest Ownership Act (“MCIOA”) does not expressly address electronic meetings. Remote meetings contingent on an association’s articles of incorporation, charter, or bylaws. If governing documents are silent, remote and virtual meetings are allowed. However, associations in Minnesota may conduct meetings electronically and allow members to participate via electronic means in accordance with the Minnesota Revised Nonprofit Corporations Act. Contact your association’s attorney to see what your community’s options are for virtual meetings based upon your governing documents.

2019 Minnesota Statutes Chapters 300 - 323A — Business, Social, And Charitable Organizations Chapter 317A — Nonprofit Corporations Section 317A.231 — Board Meetings.

Subd. 2. Meetings solely by means of remote communication. Any meeting among directors may be conducted solely by one or more means of remote communication through which all of the directors may participate in the meeting, if the same notice is given of the meeting required by subdivision 4, and if the number of directors participating in the meeting is sufficient to constitute a quorum at a meeting. Participation in a meeting by that means constitutes presence at the meeting.

MN Stat § 317A.231 (2019)