Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

By Dana Ferguson, Minnesota Public Radio News

A Minnesota panel tasked with picking a new state flag and seal saw a flurry of last minute entries.

The State Emblem Redesign Commission reported Tuesday that it received 2,633 entries during the one-month submission period, with hundreds coming in within the final day. Additional mail-in entries sent in before the Monday deadline were not included in that total.

The bulk — 85 percent — were contenders for a new flag, while the rest were submissions for a new state seal.

Over the next month, the commission will narrow the field to five finalists each for the flag and seal. And in December, it will select winners. The new designs will take hold next year unless the Legislature votes to veto them.

Submissions were required to reflect Minnesota’s shared history, resources and diverse cultural communities. Designers won’t be eligible for a prize or monetary compensation if their idea gets picked.

To be eligible, a designer had to be 18 or older, or have a parent or guardian submit on their behalf. Each submitter could enter up to three designs for the flag and three for the seal.

Members of the commission, along with their immediate family are ineligible to apply.

Entries that contain obscene or profane wording or imagery will be disqualified, as will designs that contain symbols, emblems or likenesses that represent only a single community or person. Submissions generated by artificial intelligence are also ineligible.