MN SEC OF STATE CANDIDACY RESUME
REFORM CANDIDATE
PRIOR POLITICAL CANDIDACY
- Minnesota Secretary of State Candidate (2022) — Ran lean campaign focused on election process issues; 110,000 votes in republican primary with only 90 days preparation and while accepting no political donations
- Campaign Focus: Election transparency, verifiable processes, and hand counting; solving elections begins to solve other inefficiencies on government
- Platform: Audited Minnesota's election infrastructure and published findings publicly online:
- https://everyvoterwins.substack.com , and
- https://projectminnesota.com
PUBLICATIONS & RESEARCH
Three Books on Minnesota Election Process:
- [S]elections in Minnesota (2022, republished 2024 & 2025) — Analysis of electronic-controlled elections and case for hand-counted paper ballots
- Auditing Minnesota: The 2022 SOS Campaign (2025) — Documentation of election process issues during campaign
- Hennepin County Mails It In (2025) — Local focus on mail-in voting history and 2024 absentee ballot board violations –in progress
- Simon's Sensors: The Secret of the iPads — Investigation of electronic poll pad systems, which may enable precinct-level manipulation
Additional Writing:
- "Ten Days in Minneapolis" (2025) — Travelogue with election questions woven into book
- Videos, podcast episodes, and articles at https://everyvoterwins.com and documentation at https://projectminnesota.com covering election integrity topics
FRAMEWORK DEVELOPMENT
- Every Voter Wins Framework — Created comprehensive approach to election reform ensuring all voter voices are counted, balancing system continuity with reconstructability
- Beautiful Elections Legislative Blueprint — Drafted policy recommendations for restoring election integrity at https://projectminnesota.com/beautiful
- Local Autonomy Options List — Curated at projectminnesota.com/local providing communities with self-governance pathways beginning with town boards and city councils
ADVOCACY & SPEAKING
- Regular Speaker (2022–Present) — Addressed town, city, and county meetings across a dozen Minnesota counties
- Key Presentations or Citizen Input:
- Sherburne County Commissioner Board Meetings (2022)
- Anoka County Commissioner Board Meetings (2023)
- Hennepin County Canvassing Board sessions (2022 & 2024)
- Save Minnesota Rally (November 2, 2024, Capitol in St. Paul)
- The 50-state Moment of Truth Summit (2022) and the Election Crime Bureau (2023)
ELECTION INTEGRITY WORK
- Oak Grove Case Analysis — Applied Martin Geddes Civilization Repair Toolkit to election irregularity investigation summarized at https://newsletter.martingeddes.com/p/the-real-subject-was-never-minnesota
- Gold Standard Election Initiative — Contributed to Gold Standard Whitepaper published by Rick Weible (uscase.org); participated in national hand-count expo (Texas, May 2025)
- Minnesota Supreme Court Petitions:
- Documented Susan Shogren Smith's 2020 Petition to Correct Errors and Omissions (Case A20-1486) during the System's sloppy and punitive disciplinary hearings
- Petitioner on A22-1080 prior to August 9, 2022 primary election
- Documented 40-day absentee ballot board violation in Hennepin County (2024) confirmed by Minnesota Supreme Court
- Data Transparency Advocacy — Filed FOIA requests; documented redaction patterns in election records related to Ballot Images and Cast Vote Records, and KNOWiNK poll pads in Hennepin County's Poll Print pilot program (on demand ballot printing)
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
- Resident: Hennepin County since 2010 (three Minneapolis neighborhoods)
- Observer Training: Trained in ballot counting procedures; participated in Logic & Accuracy tests; analyzed Post-Election Review hand count processes
- Cross-County Monitoring: Attended canvassing boards in Hennepin and Anoka County
- Citizen Investigations: Documented iPad/electronic poll pad usage
KEY FINDINGS DOCUMENTED
|
Issue |
Finding |
|---|---|
|
Mail-in Ballot Growth |
674,566 (2016) → 1,909,277 (2020) — 60% of total votes |
|
Witness Requirement Waiver |
Removed via court settlement without legislative approval |
|
Absentee Board Violations |
40 days without party-balanced oversight (Hennepin 2024) |
|
Electronic Tabulators |
Mandated by 93rd Legislature (2023) |
|
Cast Vote Records (CVR) |
Ballot image portion of CVRs made non-public records |
CONTACT & RESOURCES
- Website: https://everyvoterwins.com and https://projectminnesota.com
- Local Autonomy: https://projectminnesota.com/local
- Plan for Office of the Secretary of State: https://projectminnesota.com/mnoss
- Email: erikvanmechelen@pm.me or elections@projectminnesota.com
"What happens if we create stronger elections in Minnesota?"
Note: This resume reflects work and advocacy from 2021–2026. For current filing requirements and candidacy status, please verify with Minnesota Secretary of State office.
Document prepared for candidacy purposes. All claims based on publicly documented work and personal experience.