Four Minnesota Democrats are vying to take on two Republican members of the U.S. House in the Twin Cities area, hoping to test whether President Donald Trump has damaged the GOP's chances in the suburbs.
This Saturday's endorsing conventions in the Second and Third congressional districts should whittle the field of hopefuls down to one each, setting up general election contests that could tip the balance of power in Congress next year.
The races, along with several congressional contests in greater Minnesota, will be some of the most closely watched in the country this year. The incumbents, Reps. Jason Lewis and Erik Paulsen, have attracted both first-time candidates — galvanized into politics by Trump's victory — and a returning challenger who almost won one of the seats last time around.
In each district, DFL activists have a choice between high-profile and well-financed candidates, and progressive challengers running to their left.
In the Third District, largely composed of suburban Hennepin County, wealthy businessman Dean Phillips, who raised more than $1 million last year, squares off against Tonka Bay Council Member and National Guard veteran Adam Jennings. Whoever wins the party's endorsement will take on five-termer Paulsen in a district won by Hillary Clinton in 2016 — and, if victorious, would become the first Democrat to represent the affluent, educated western suburbs since 1961.
Mood shift in the Second
In the Second District, which covers a swath of the southeastern metro and some rural areas and smaller towns to the south, high school civics teacher and football coach Jeff Erdmann is running a congressional campaign between his lesson plans, while former medical device company executive Angie Craig seeks a rematch against Lewis. Craig lost one of the closest elections in the country to Lewis in 2016.
"Democrats are fired up. They're ready to show up," said Craig, a mother of four whose campaign raised more than half a million dollars in the first four months of this year. "What they want is a representative who's really focused on kitchen-table issues: How do you create jobs and opportunities for Minnesota families? How do you work toward health care that families can actually afford? How do we make sure we're funding education?"
The mood in the district feels very different to Craig than it did in 2016, when she and Lewis ran for the same open seat — a race she lost by single percentage point. Hundreds of volunteers have signed up and showed up to campaign for her, she said. They've turned out in snowstorms and in the middle of Vikings games, and sometimes both.