Current Political News

Minnesota Federal Court Prohibits Enforcement of Exit Polling Statute

In an opinion released October 15, 2008, Chief District Judge Michael Davis ruled that the state of Minnesota could not prohibit news organizations from conducting exit polling within 100 feet of a building where polls are located on election day. Pollsters working for news organizations now will be allowed to approach voters outside of polling places for the purpose of conducting exit polls as they have in 2004 and 2006. Read full opinion.

Election News
Minnesota Results: A Highlight of Key Primaries

September 9, 2008. Two incumbent legislators will not appear on November’s ballot after losing today’s primary fight. Two-term Representative Neil Peterson (R – Bloomington) and freshman Representative Willie Dominguez (DFL – Minneapolis) both lost their battles to candidates their parties endorsed this spring.

With almost two-thirds of the votes counted in open Senate District 16, Alison Krueger looks to be the Republican candidate. Krueger faced off against Republican-endorsed and eight-term Representative Mark Olson (R – Big Lake).

With almost sixty percent of the votes counted in Minnesota’s First Congressional District it looks as though Republican-endorsed Dr. Brian Davis will appear on November’s ballot. Davis, a physician at Rochester’s Mayo Clinic, beat out long-term State Senator Dick Day in today’s primary.

Official Results from the September 9, 2008 Primary
Information linked from the official site of the Minnesota Secretary of State.

Upcoming Minnesota Primary Tuesday, September 9

Over two-dozen seats for the House of Representatives will compete in a primary battle tomorrow, September 9. Twelve incumbents will fight to stay on the ballot for the General Election on November 4. Primaries for local and state-wide offices will be held on Tuesday as well.

Primary Battles Worth Watching:

7b – Duluth (Open Seat): Mike Jaros (DFL–Duluth) announced his retirement after sixteen terms in the Minnesota House of Representatives. The open seat, likely to stay DFL, has six DFL candidates vying for the spot. The local party chose no endorsement at their endorsing convention. In a unique move, retiring Representative Jaros endorsed Marshall Stenerson, while several Duluth city council members have endorsed Roger Reinert for the seat. Reinert out raised Stenerson by over $11,000 according to Pre Primary reports. Just days before the primary a fellow DFL opponent John Derbis dropped out of the primary and endorsed Stenerson.

41b – Bloomington: Representative Neil Peterson (R–Bloomington), having completed his second term in office, lost his party’s endorsement after voting to override Republican Governor Tim Pawlenty on the 2008 $6.6 million transportation funding package. Republicans endorsed Jan Schneider, a business consultant from Bloomington and a long time republican activist, for his seat.

48b – Anoka: Representative Jim Abeler (R–Anoka) will also fight a primary battle after voting to override the same transportation funding package. The republicans did not endorse a candidate for the seat. Abeler’s opponent is Don Julzenga.

58a – Minneapolis: Having served six terms in office, Representative Joe Mullery (DFL–Minneapolis), Chair of the Public Safety Committee in the House, will face off with Jon Olson in a tough primary. Olson is past president and current Commissioner of the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board.

58b – Minneapolis: Two incumbent candidates lost their party’s endorsement, but have decided to run in a primary against the endorsed candidate. Representative Augustine “Willie” Dominguez (DFL–Minneapolis), serving his first term, lost the party’s endorsement to Bobby Joe Champion last spring. Both Dominguez and Champion will be on Tuesday’s ballot.

Senate District 16 – Big Lake (Open Seat): Representative Mark Olson (R–Big Lake) is vying for the seat vacated by Senator Betsy Wergin who was recently appointed by the Governor to the Public Utilities Commission. Olson received the republican endorsement, even after his conviction on charges of domestic assault. Additionally, the House Republican Caucus voted to remove him from their party’s caucus at the start of the 2008 legislative session. Allison Krueger’s name remains on the primary ballot, however having agreed to abide by the party’s endorsement, she is not actively campaigning. Krueger has been endorsed by the Senate Republican Caucus which has publicly stated Olson will not be welcomed into the caucus if elected in November.

U.S. Senate Race: DFL Candidate Priscilla Lord Faris is waging a primary battle against DFL endorsed Al Franken for the U.S. Senate race against Norm Coleman. Faris is the only DFL challenger spending a significant amount of money against Franken in an effort to boot him from the race.

Congressional District 1: State Senator Dick Day chose to bypass the endorsement process and instead focused on a primary strategy. He will face Dr. Brian Davis, a relative political newcomer.

Below is a complete list of primaries held for House of Representative seats.

DFL Primaries

5b Chisholm
Marc Pocrnich
Anthony “Tony” Sertich* (incumbent)

7b Duluth – Open Seat
Brandon Clokey
John Derbis
Daniel Maryland
Roger Reinert
Marshall Stenerson
*No DFL Endorsed Candidate

10b Wadena, Ottertail – Open Seat
Janine Hudson
Timothy Neimenen*
Pete Phillips

16b Big Lake, Becker – Open Seat
Steve Andrews
Bruno Gad

27a Albert Lea
Robin Brown* (incumbent)
William Wagner

37b Rosemount
Phillip Sterner*
Kurt Walter-Hansen

42a Minnetonka
Daniel Kim
Maria Ruud* (incumbent)

55a Maplewood
Leon Lillie* (incumbent)
Diana Longrie
Joseph Polencheck

56a Lake Elmo, Woodbury
Julie Bunn* (incumbent)
Rich Johnson

58a Minneapolis
Joe Mullery (incumbent)
Jon Olson
*No Endorsed Candidate

58b Minneapolis
Bobby Joe Champion*
Augustine “Willie” Dominguez (incumbent)

59b Minneapolis
Phyllis Kahn* (incumbent)
Joel Rainville

61b Minneapolis – Open Seat
Harry Grigsby
Jeff Hayden*

Republican Party Primaries

4a Bemidji – Open Seat
John Carlson*
Adam Steele

10b Wadena, Ottertail – Open Seat
Al Hanson
Mark Murdock*

33b Wayzata – Open Seat
Connie Doepke*
John Hollander

35b Jordan
Mark Buesgens* (incumbent)
Tom Rees

36a Lakeville
Mary Liz Holberg* (incumbent)
Mitchell Johnston

41b Bloomington
Neil Peterson (incumbent)
Jan Schneider*

44a St. Louis Park
Darrel Brown
Tracy Leahy
*No Endorsed Candidate

48b Anoka
Jim Abeler (incumbent)
Don Julzenga
*No Endorsed Candidate

53a Shoreview
John Kappler*
Mady Reiter

54b Vadnais Heights, Little Canada
Tom Effertz*
Julie Johnson

62a Minneapolis
Kirk Brink
Dave Shegstad*

64a St. Paul
Sharon Anderson
Meg Ferber*

66b St. Paul
Mark Roosevelt
Lucky Rosenbloom
*No Endorsed Candidate

Senate District 16 – Open Seat
Allison Krueger
Mark Olson*
*Party Endorsed Candidate

LGN Names Rebecca Klett Director of State Government Relations

Lockridge Grindal Nauen P.L.L.P has named Rebecca K. Klett as its Director of State Government Relations. This new leadership position is designed to assist in the overall management of operational, personnel and strategic planning for Lockridge Grindal Nauen's State Government Relations practice area.

The Minneapolis firm has a significant lobbying presence comprised of thirteen lobbyists and support staff in Minnesota, as well as, a strong federal lobbying group in Washington, D.C. Ms. Klett has been a lobbyist with the firm since 1999. Prior to joining the firm, she was committee staff in the Minnesota State Senate. She has been active in the political process since college and worked from 1989 to 1992 in the Wisconsin State Legislature. Ms. Klett has a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and is currently in her third year of law school, part-time, at William Mitchell College of Law.

Minnesota House of Representatives 2008 State Fair Poll Results

September 2, 2008. Every year at the Minnesota State Fair, the House of Representatives polls Minnesotan's on current issues. This year's poll included issues ranging from budget cuts to the Minnesota State Sport. See a complete list of polling questions and results.

Elections 2008: Filings Close Today

July 15, 2008. Filings closed today for the November elections, bringing speculation and surprises to an end. All 134 House seats are up for election, with fourteen members not seeking re-election. After a tough 2006 election for Republicans in the state legislature, Democrats need to gain just five seats Nov. 4 to pick up a veto-proof majority.

Noteworthy Filings
Nine-term Representative Ron Erhardt (R—Edina) has chosen to run as an Independent after not receiving his party’s endorsement. Erhardt was one of six Republicans who voted to override a Pawlenty veto on a Transportation spending bill last session. Of the six republicans just one received the Republican Party’s endorsement for re-election. Two of the six are retiring, and two are running in a primary battle. Mark Olson (IR—Big Lake) will not be seeking a re-election after eight terms in office. Olson was voted out of the House Republican caucus in 2006 after an arrest on domestic abuse charges.

Senate Election
Senator Dan Larson (D-Bloomington) and Senator Betsy Wergin (R-Princeton) will be leaving the Senate this fall. Senator Larson will be joining our firm, Lockridge Grindal Nauen, and Senator Wergin has been appointed to the Public Utilities Commission. Both elections will be held on Election Day, Tuesday, November 4, 2008.

LGN Election Filings July 15, 2008.