Minnesota
Upper Midwest State Legislative Projections
The last in a series of election projections, Smart Politics predicts which political party will win control of state legislatures across the Upper Midwest. Democrats are in an advantaged position in most states in each legislative chamber to pick up…
Read MoreKlobuchar Builds Lead Over Kennedy In Latest Humphrey Poll
In the five weeks since the last Humphrey Institute survey, DFL nominee for Senate Amy Klobuchar has increased her lead from 52-36 to 55-33 over GOP nominee Mark Kennedy. While this 22-point lead is 3 to 7 points larger…
Read MoreHatch Builds Lead in New Humphrey Institute Poll
Excerpts from a new report by the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance on its latest poll on the Minnesota Governor’s race: Even though the race remains too close to call, Attorney General Mike Hatch has opened…
Read MoreMN House: GOP at a Disadvantage
After losing thirteen seats in the Minnesota State House in 2004, the republicans hold a slim 68-66 advantage over their rival DFL. Even if one puts aside the fact that the state (and national) climate is trending democratic in recent…
Read MoreMN-08: An Intriguing Matchup
Minnesota’s 8th Congressional District (comprising the northeastern Iron Range counties), is home to one of the more unusual Congressional races this year, in which DFL incumbent James Obserstar, the senior member of Minnesota’s US House delegation, is being challenged by…
Read MoreReligion and Minnesota Politics
The relationship between religion and politics should fascinate even the most casual political observer. (In recent weeks religion has become an interesting sidebar in the 6th District US House race—a matter best saved for another blog entry). Karl Rove—President George…
Read MoreMN-02: Rowley Closes Gap
Coleen Rowley, the DFL candidate in Minnesota’s 2nd US House district, has closed her deficit to 2-term GOP incumbent John Kline from 20 to 8 points in less than three weeks, according to polls released by SurveyUSA in late…
Read MoreSplit Ticket Voting Revisited
I co-authored a report on Split Ticket Voting released today at the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance. The popular lore is that Americans and Minnesotans are sharply divided into Republican “red” and Democratic “blue.” Although the divisions…
Read MoreUpper Midwest US House Races Tighten in GOP Held Districts…But Is a Revolution Afoot?
A recent spate of polls tracking US House races in the Upper Midwest reflect what is perceived by most political analysts to be a nation-wide trend: GOP-held districts that were secure in 2004 now seem to be competitive or near…
Read MoreWho’s Looking On the Sunny Side of Life?
The Midwest…the heartland of America…where caustic coastal cynicism has not yet taken root and a hearty optimism about life in these United States still prevails. Syrupy, true, but that description about life in the Upper Midwest sounds like it might…
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