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Primaries coming up - any thoughts?
Jul. 23rd, 2022 01:00 pmIn Hennepin County, where I live, the primary races are crucial. It's mostly a one-party county, so whoever wins the DFL primary wins the election. In many races the whole primary is a sham, with essentially one candidate backed by party leaders (my city council race, for instance). But there seem to be some real contests going on in a few races, and I have very little information about any of them.
There are open seats for two key figures in local law enforcement: Hennepin County Attorney and Hennepin County Sheriff, and I don't quite understand why there is so little news coverage of these crucial races. At first glance, all the major candidates for sheriff seem impressive in one way or another, and I don't have a favorite. Not sure what's going on with County Attorney except that to everybody's relief, the current occupant of the office is stepping down. Mary Moriarty and Ryan Winkler seem to be the two leaders, with Moriarty narrowly securing the DFL endorsement. Moriarty has had a long history as a public defender. I'm not sure how I feel about that. The system needs both public defenders and prosecutors, but can you just switch horses in midstream like that and still be effective in the new role? Winkler currently represents a suburban district in the Minnesota House, which probably puts him a little to the right of Moriarty, but he has an unexpected history of supporting cannabis legalization. Again, both candidates seem impressive, but I haven't tried to delve into their differences.
There is also a credible opponent to Ilhan Omar for 5th Congressional District, although probably a long shot: Don Samuels. He doesn't seem to have a big war chest, but he has a long resume as north side resident, entrepreneur, grassroots community organizer, and former city council member. He is definitely worth a look if you're not crazy about Omar's contentious style. Even if you are a staunch supporter of the incumbent you might want to read Don Samuels' story. He is someone I have long admired. I doubt he can primary a popular incumbent, but I'm pleased to have a chance to vote for him.
Hennepin residents, are there other interesting races I've missed? Any thoughts on the candidates? What about statewide races: anything interesting? Most of our statewide offices already have DFL incumbents in them, so I usually don't pay much attention to those.
There are open seats for two key figures in local law enforcement: Hennepin County Attorney and Hennepin County Sheriff, and I don't quite understand why there is so little news coverage of these crucial races. At first glance, all the major candidates for sheriff seem impressive in one way or another, and I don't have a favorite. Not sure what's going on with County Attorney except that to everybody's relief, the current occupant of the office is stepping down. Mary Moriarty and Ryan Winkler seem to be the two leaders, with Moriarty narrowly securing the DFL endorsement. Moriarty has had a long history as a public defender. I'm not sure how I feel about that. The system needs both public defenders and prosecutors, but can you just switch horses in midstream like that and still be effective in the new role? Winkler currently represents a suburban district in the Minnesota House, which probably puts him a little to the right of Moriarty, but he has an unexpected history of supporting cannabis legalization. Again, both candidates seem impressive, but I haven't tried to delve into their differences.
There is also a credible opponent to Ilhan Omar for 5th Congressional District, although probably a long shot: Don Samuels. He doesn't seem to have a big war chest, but he has a long resume as north side resident, entrepreneur, grassroots community organizer, and former city council member. He is definitely worth a look if you're not crazy about Omar's contentious style. Even if you are a staunch supporter of the incumbent you might want to read Don Samuels' story. He is someone I have long admired. I doubt he can primary a popular incumbent, but I'm pleased to have a chance to vote for him.
Hennepin residents, are there other interesting races I've missed? Any thoughts on the candidates? What about statewide races: anything interesting? Most of our statewide offices already have DFL incumbents in them, so I usually don't pay much attention to those.
