DFL Education Foundation

Minnesota 2010 Election Results

Minnesota 2010 election results created momentous change.  The Minnesota Senate will be Republican for the first time since the Legislature became a partisan body.  The Minnesota House also became a Republican dominated body.  The sitting Titan of Minnesota Democratic politics, Jim Oberstar, lost his reelection bid.  At first glance it would seem that there was a conservative wave in Minnesota and voters have lost faith in the ability of governement.  

I think this would be in incorrect lesson from the election.

Reference the election results for the Senate and the House at the Secretary of State’s office.  I’m including a sample of races below. 

District Candidate Votes Margin 

SD 15 GOP PEDERSON 13,495

DFL HENTGES 13,035 460

SD 25 GOP DEKRUIF 15,272

DFL DAHLE 14,387 885

SD 31 GOP MILLER 13,981

DFL ROPES 13,544 437

SD 38 GOP DALEY 15,801

DFL CARLESON 14,718 1,083

SD 40 GOP HALL 14,852

DFL DOLL 14,242 610

SD 56 GOP LILLIE 19,850

DFL SALTZMAN 18,668 1,182

SD 51 GOP WOLF 17,002

DFL BETZOLD 15,301 1,701

SD 53 GOP CHAMBERLAIN 18,394

DFL RUMMEL 16,483 1,911

8,269

 

 

SD 01B GOP KIEL 6,528

DFL LIEDER 6,397 131

SD 02B GOP HANCOCK 8,449

DFL SAILER 7,668 781

SD 03B GOP MCELFATRICK 8,516

DFL SOLBERG 8,107 409

SD 13B GOP VOGEL 7,998

DFL JUHUKE 7,197 801

SD 15B GOP BANAIAN 5,477

DFL LEWIS 5,467 10

SD 25A GOP GRUENHAGEN 8,299

DFL MCGUIRE 7,963 336

SD 25B GOP WOODARD 8,898

DFL BLY 8,867 31

SD 27A GOP MURRAY 7,509

DFL BROWN 7,452 57

SD 30B GOP BENSON 9,692

DFL WELTI 8,802 890

SD 38A GOP ANDERSON 7,606

DFL MASIN 6,829 777

SD 38B GOP WARDLOW 8,323

DFL OBERMUELLER 7,680 643

SD 40A GOP MYHRA 6,675

DFL MORGAN 6,203 472

SD 41A GOP DOWNEY 10,354

DFL STAUNTON 9,767 587

SD 42A GOP STENSRUD 8,689

DFL RUUD 8,582 107

SD 49B GOP PETERSEN 7,171

DFL NEWTON 6,760 411

SD 56A GOP LOHMER 9,166

DFL BUNN 8,259 907

SD 57A GOP KRIESEL 7,310

DFL PETERSON 6,858 452

7,802

 

If the DFL in Minnesota had gotten 10,000 more voters to the polls, all of the Constitution offices, plus the Legislature, would be in DFL hands and there’s no conservative groundswell.  Increase voter turnout by less than a half of a percentage point, and we’re talking about Minnesota bucking the National trend and surfing a blue wave.  

I know that liberal bloggers and conservative bloggers are jumping to conclusions, but I don’t think that there are conclusions to make beyond liberals, and most importantly young minorities, stayed home.  I ask the question, what has to happen in St. Paul such that young and minority voters make the choice to come to the polls?

 

Jeremy Wieland

 

Caucuses in Minnesota

It is Caucus time in Minnesota.  Regardless of political affiliation Minnesotans across the State will meet tomorrow to express preferences for candidates, pass resolutions to platforms, elect delegates, and shake hands with neighbors.  Some will stay home because, in the words of Jack Paar, "voting only encourages them."  Regardless of your choice tomorrow, party choice or abstaining, do it because it's a political statement, and not because you're overly concerned with Gibbs and Zeva.  

Check out the below information if you don't know where to go.

The Republican Party at 651-222-0022 or http://mngop.com/inner.asp?z=16

The Independence Party at 651-487-9700 or http://www.independenceminnesota.org

The Green Party at 651-288-2820 or http://www.mngreens.org/caucus2010

The DFL Party at 651-293-1200 or http://www.dflcaucuses.org/

Not going is a choice too, but do it because you don't want "to encourage them" and not because you're apathetic.

Jeremy Wieland

Conversation with Martin Sabo

Our August Stone Arch Discussion welcomed former US Congressman and Minnesota Speaker of the House Martin Sabo. This informal gathering covered many of his thoughts on what works, what doesn’t and a little history.

This pod cast is brought to you by the DFL Education Foundation and iDream.tv.

Click this link to hear the conversation.
Download martin_sabo.m4a

United States Foreign Service, the past and problematic future

The latest Stone Arch in June hosted Bill Davnie recently retired for the United States Foreign Service. His remarks bear on the past and the future of our foreign service and the role of diplomacy in a dangerous world. Click here:

This pod cast was produced by iDream.tv for the DFL Education Foundation.Download bill_davnie.mp3

Matt Entenza and Minnesota 2020

Back in February the DFL Education Foundation was proud to host former Legislator Matt Entenza to discuss a progressive future in Minnesota, and his organization, Minnesota 2020. This was a wide ranging conversation that opened with Matt’s narrative of what it is for him to live in Minnesota.

This pod cast was produced by the DFL Education Foundation and iDream.tv.

Click here for the full pod cast.

Download Entenza.m4a

Check on Your Elected Official

Have you ever wanted to check on a senator's complete voting record?  Or follow a bill from introduction through resolution?  Are you interested in what the news and the blogs are covering?

We suggest OpenCongress - a joint project of the Sunlight Foundation and the Participatory Politics Foundation

The Nation says: OpenCongress is an amazing new tool for activists and citizens.

Information Today says: OpenCongress brings together, for the first time in one place, all the best data on what’s really happening in Congress.

Let's Get Moving - Transportation in Minnesota (video)

See the video of our session on the challenges for transportation in Minnesota and how to address them, featuring Dave Van Hattum, from Transit for Livable Communities and Adeel Lari from the Humphrey Institute.

Adeel Lari, Director of Innovative Transportation Finance, Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, recently toured Northern Europe and shared his thoughts on Europe's fuel pricing and if any European practices could be applied to Minnesota and the United States. He is a former employee of the Minnesota Department of Transportation and has worked on the I394 MnPASS project.

Dave Van Hattum, Policy and Advocacy Program Manager of Transit for Livable Communities, discussed current legislative activities and the recent constitutional amendment passage. He is a graduate of the Humphrey Institute and worked for the Downtown Mpls. Transportation Management Organization and the I-494 Corridor Commission. 

Click here to watch the video

The Guantanamo Bay Challenge: Finding the Balance between Our Nation's Security and Our Nation's Ideals

Jim Dorsey and Nicole Moen, Minneapolis lawyers who represent a Guantanamo detainee, spoke at the Stone Arch Discussion Group about who the detainees are, how they are being treated and what legal recourse is available to test the appropriateness of their continued detention.

The DFL Education Foundation pod cast was produced by LOCATION IMAGES at www.idream.tv. “Promoting Business, Education, and the Arts around the Globe.”

Download guantanamo_bay_challange.m4a

Poison pill for the minimum wage bill

After significant pressure from party moderates, Republicans allowed a minimum wage bill to come to the House floor.  It seemed a triumph for the working poor, whose $5.15 an hour wage can't even put them over the poverty line for "workers with families."  However, an aide to Senate Republican leadership said that the only way minimum wage legislation would pass is with an estate tax rollback for the super-wealthy.  The article quotes Ohio Representative Tim Ryan's (D) response:

"It's outrageous the Republican Congress can't simply help poor people without doing something for their wealthy contributors."

Since it depends on the political vagaries of Congress and is not indexed to inflation, the minimum wage stagnates over time.  Since the last increase passed in 1996, the wage has lost $1 in value to inflation, most of that in the past six years while gas prices have nearly tripled.  In fact, the minimum wage hasn't been able to support a family of three at the poverty level since 1969.  Even with the Earned Income Tax Credit, minimum wage earners are still below the poverty line.

Some folks argue that because minimum wage increases can cause unemployment increases, they should be abandoned.  But there's something almost un-American about the notion that someone can work full-time and still be in poverty.

Major potholes in MnDOT's transportation budget

As mentioned previously, Minnesota's transportation budget shows a significant shortfall, with nearly $1 billion in underfunded projects.  This shortfall has finally shown up on the bottom line, with the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) sliding from a heady surplus in 2002 to a budget deficit of $60 million this year.  The budget crunch has also shown itself in postponed projects and the most recent debacle of asking contractors to front $90 million of the major Crosstown-35W bottleneck project. 

While skyrocketing construction costs (especially for materials such as steel and concrete) have eroded MnDOT's budget, there's still the significant factor of income, with the state adding no new income sources since the last gas tax increase in 1988.  A ballot question this fall will allow voters to dedicate the entire motor vehicle tax to transportation, but at the expense of the state's general fund, also recently strapped for cash.  The governor's plan was to add $2.5 billion in borrowed money to transportation construction, but offers no new spending for the increasingly sparse maintenance budget.  At some point, a good transportation system requires construction and maintenance, and both require a steady funding stream.

Disturbingly, neither Democrat nor Republican gubernatorial candidates are offering anything new on transportation.  For that, you have to look to Peter Hutchinson's "team," which hasn't shied away from a gas tax or other usage fee to balance the transportation budget.