Good morning and TGIF.
Our friends at the APM Research Lab have put together a one-stop page that analyzes poll results and other essential information about this year’s campaign in Minnesota. Bookmark this page because they’ll be updating it as the year goes on.
Brady Slater at the Duluth News Tribune has this story:It’s been just over a year since Iron Range Sen. David Tomassoni announced last summer he’d been diagnosed with the fatal Lou Gehrig’s disease. He’s still fighting. “It’s my goal in life to hopefully put an end to this horrendous disease,” Tomassoni, 69, said of ALS, or the neurodegenerative disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Tomassoni spoke from a comfortable chair in his place at Solvay Hospice House in Duluth.
The first head-to-head campaign showdown between DFL Gov. Tim Walz and Republican-endorsed challenger Scott Jensen is set for early August. The two are confirmed to appear together at the FarmFest expo in western Minnesota on Aug. 3. FarmFest political forums tend to focus on rural issues, such as agriculture and economic development policies. There will also be multi-candidate events featuring congressional candidates at FarmFest.
Republican Tyler Kistner says he raised about $491,000 in the second quarter of the year for his challenge to DFL incumbent Rep. Angie Craig in Minnesota’s 2nd Congressional District. Kistner’s campaign said it had about $523,000 cash on hand at the end of the quarter. Craig said last week she raised $1.4 million in the second quarter and had about $4.7 million on hand.
Meanwhile, the Star Tribune reports that Craig has filed a complaint against Kistner for being two months late with his personal financial disclosure form: GOP congressional hopeful Tyler Kistner is two months late in filing his personal financial disclosure form, prompting his DFL opponent U.S. Rep. Angie Craig to file an ethics complaint with the U.S. Attorney’s office. Craig's campaign said the U.S. attorney general could seek a civil penalty of up to $50,000 for failing to file required information. Billy Grant, a spokesman for Kistner's campaign, called that "absurd" posturing. The U.S. House Committee on Ethics would handle the matter and it would not be referred to the Department of Justice, he said. "We didn't turn our disclosure in on time. It's a $200 fine. It's not the end of the world, people do it all the time," Grant said.
And in the 1st District, Republican Brad Finstad’s campaign says it raised $458,000 in the second quarter and had more than $267,000 cash on hand.
Via news release: Minnesota public health officials reported a record number of overdose deaths in 2021 , following an alarming pattern seen in many other states in recent years. According to a new report issued this week by the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), most overdose deaths in 2021 were associated with fentanyl, a powerful drug that continues to become more common across the country. The 1,286 overdose deaths reported to MDH last year represented a 22 percent increase from the 2020 total. This averages more than three people dying every day from an overdose of any drug type. For the first time since 2014, there was a larger percentage increase in overdose deaths in Greater Minnesota (23 percent) than in the seven-county metropolitan area (20 percent). “This increase in drug overdose deaths is alarming, but there are things we can do about it,” said Minnesota Commissioner of Health Jan Malcolm. “One important step is to expand programs that make it easier for people to access naloxone — a medication that can reverse overdoses and save lives.” | 