Politics & Government

Rep. John Kline Earns GOP Endorsement: DFL Candidates Meet at Forum

For years, the 2nd District's John Kline has been a safe bet during election season, but after this year's Congressional redistricting, it might not be as easy a win.

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With less than a week until DFL Second Congressional delegates choose their candidate to run against , the three hopefuls came together for a candidate forum this past weekend.

Seeking Saturday's endorsement are Northfield City Council , Dakota County Commissioner  and former state representative . 

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The UpTake spoke with the three candidates before the forum. All three videos are attached to this post.

Ganey, a development officer at , said one of his priorities is to make education available for every American.

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"We need to invest in our young children and also make sure that every college-bound student can afford it," he said in his candidacy announcement last month. "We must support the young entrepreneur and the mid-career professional who have the bold ideas for a new business, and make sure they are not thwarted by a lack of local infrastructure or a lack of health care coverage."

Last month when Obermueller was "seriously" , he told The UpTake that he wanted to put real representation back into Washington, D.C.

"We basically lost a decade of prosperity and progress in this district," he said.

Gaylord, an attorney, is in her third term as a Dakota County Commissioner, having been elected in 2002 and re-elected in 2006 and 2010. In 2006 and 2009, she was elected Dakota County Board Chair and is the current Vice Chair.

Kline targeted?

For years, Kline has been a safe bet during election season, churning out double-digit election wins every cycle.

But after this year's Congressional redistricting, the new Second District now includes DFL-leaning portions of northern Dakota County, as well as southern Washington County, and doesn't include Republican strongholds such as Carver County.

In the 2010 election, Kline beat up on DFLer Shelley Madore, winning by 27 points. But the tale of the election lay in fundraising: the Star Tribune reported that Madore raised just $89,000 compared to Kline's $1.5 million.

And that's where the DFL is looking for help. 

Kline is now the target of Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee radio ads, according to MinnPost, slamming the Congressman for his vote in support of Rep. Paul Ryan's Republican budget plan that eliminates Medicare.

In addition, Politico is reporting that the Democratic National Committee is looking more closely at the Second District, and could plow money into the race in support of a Democrat.


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