Minnesota Administrative Rules
Agency 196 - Human Services Department
Chapter 9575 - MERIT SYSTEM
Part 9575.0080 - POLITICAL ACTIVITY

Subpart 1. Prohibitions.

No employee shall use his or her official authority or influence for the purpose of interfering with or affecting the result of an election or nomination for office.

No employee shall directly coerce, attempt to coerce, command, or advise a merit system employee to pay, lend, or contribute anything of value to a party, committee, organization, agency, or person for political purposes.

No employee shall be a candidate in a partisan election for any public office or for any political party office which is obtained through a partisan election.

Subp. 2. Federal restrictions.

An employee continues to be covered by the federal Hatch Act restrictions including all restrictions listed in subparts 1 to 3 while on annual leave, sick leave, leave without pay, or administrative leave. Any employee shall resign from the service upon filing as a candidate for public office, except as provided in subpart 3.

All prohibitions of political activity provided in the federal Hatch Act apply to employees under the merit system.

Subp. 3. Nonpartisan elections.

Any employee may be a candidate in nonpartisan elections. These are elections in which none of the candidates is to be nominated or elected as representing a political party whose candidates for presidential election received votes in the last presidential election.