Primary election set for Dec. 18 in southern Scott County

Yahoo

09-02-2025

By Shannon Fiecke
The short timeframe for a special election in Senate District 25 just got shorter for Republican candidates.
A primary will be held Tuesday, Dec. 18, to determine which Republican candidate will represent the party on the Jan. 3 ticket.
The Republican-endorsed candidate, former state Rep. Ray Cox, will go up against the mayor of Henderson, Keith Swenson, and former New Prague school board member Rod Tietz in a Dec. 18 primary election.
Although they each only have one candidate, the Independence and DFL parties will still be included in the primary election. Minnesota's primary system is open, meaning voters can pick the candidate of their choice for whichever party they wish, but can only vote for one party.
It was the Democrats who had worried about the possibility of a primary battle when Gov. Tim Pawlenty on Nov. 28 called for a special election to replace Sen. Tom Neuville, R-Northfield, whom the governor appointed to a Rice County judicial post.
Initially, there was an onslaught of interested parties for the Democrat ticket, with only one candidate, Ray Cox, vying for the Republican spot.
Democrats worried that if they had multiple candidates run in a primary, they would have less time to build the final candidate's campaign, while Cox – already known from his previous two terms in the Minnesota Legislature – would have more time to publicize his candidacy.
Instead, it will be the Republican primary winner who will have to gain ground on the Democrats.
Last Wednesday, the local Democrat and Republican parties endorsed candidates for the race.
It took Democrats six ballots to choose Northfield teacher Kevin Dahle. He competed against Montgomery Mayor Mick McGuire, Arlington teacher Don Sauter, and Northfield lobbyist Anne Miller. Dahle's opponents have all since dropped out of the race. Friday was the deadline to withdraw.
A Democrat committee made up of precinct chairpeople, senate district officers, and local members of the DFL Party's state central committee – 39 in all – participated in the endorsement meeting, said Kathy Farmer, chairwoman of the local Democrat party unit.
Neither of the Republican candidates Cox faces in the primary election sought the party endorsement.
Glencoe-Silver Lake school board member Glenn Gruenhagen, a late entry, also sought the endorsement, but he won't run in the primary. Cox was selected on the first ballot. There were 48 Republican delegates, said Kathy Dodds, chairwoman of the Rice-Scott County Republican Party.
There is also an Independence Party candidate, Vance Norgaard, a Northfield organic farmer, but it's unknown whether his party will endorse him.
Republican primary
Swenson, who calls himself a good Republican voter but also a party outsider, filed for the election two days before the deadline. He chose not to seek the party endorsement. He said it was a foregone conclusion it would go to Cox.
'When you go through that (endorsement) process, you agree to be a functionary (of the party),' the nine-term mayor said. 'I think a primary is a valid part of the election process. I think people need a choice rather than two parties serve up their standard bearers. You can put anyone in those (endorsed) positions and they'll be expected to toe the party line.'
Swenson, a homebuilder, said he is frustrated with status quo at the legislature and how partisan it has become.
Tietz, a real estate agent, was drawn to the Senate race because of his concerns about the housing industry.
He filed on the last day possible. Because of the quick timing of the election, he said he didn't find out about the Republican endorsing convention in time. Had he known, he would have sought the Republican endorsement and welcomed the chance to explain his views, he said.
Without the endorsement, Tietz said it was up in the air whether he should run, but people encouraged him to still file.
Cox, a Northfield construction company owner, represented the eastern portion of Senate District 25 in the House of Representatives for two terms before narrowly losing his seat to Democrat David Bly of Northfield in 2006.
A major plus to Cox's candidacy is an existing volunteer pool and name recognition due to his time on the Northfield school board and the state legislature.
Cox said he was encouraged to run for the senate seat by outgoing Sen. Neuville. Cox lists educational and healthcare system reforms as top priorities should he be elected.
Cox planned to withdraw from the election if Republicans didn't endorse him for the Senate seat. Instead, he had said he would refocus his attention back on challenging Bly for the House seat in the 2008 election.
Other party candidates
State Senate District 25 includes Le Sueur County and portions of Rice, Scott and Sibley Counties.
In Scott County, the district includes the city of Belle Plaine, as well as the townships of Blakeley, Belle Plaine, Helena, and Cedar Lake.
In addition to Dahle, the Democrat-endorsed candidate, a third party candidate, Vance Norgaard, is also running for the special election.
A teacher since 1982, Dahle has been president of the Northfield Education Association for 10 years. He also sits on the Council for Local Presidents for Education Minnesota, the state's teacher union.
Norgaard spent most of his career with Minnesota-based Northern Pipeline Construction Co. He also once owned American Aviation Company at Flying Cloud Field.
Norgaard said he is working on securing the Independence Party endorsement.
A call to the state party headquarters was not returned.
Shannon Fiecke is a staff writer for the Shakopee Valley News. She can be reached at 952-345-6679 or [e-mail].
Do you live in the district? Southern Scott County residents who live in the city of Belle Plaine or the townships of Blakeley, Belle Plaine, Helena, and Cedar Lake reside in Senate District 25. The district also includes Le Sueur County and portions of Sibley and Rice counties. Choose the special election link at sos.state.mn.us to view a full map.
Where to vote? The primary will be held Dec. 18. According to the Minnesota Secretary of State's Office, the special election is using the same polling locations as the 2006 general election. To find your polling place, go to pollfinder.sos.state.mn.us.
Want to learn more? Read the candidate's opinions on public policy issues in Thurdsay's paper. On Friday, find the answers to more questions online.