Tuesday's primary pits DFLers and Republicans against their own kind in 13 House races that span the state, with a few particularly ferocious contests that are creating internal conflicts for both parties.
Nine races have Republicans challenging their party's endorsed candidates, while six races feature DFLers running against other DFLers. Many of those offer just token opposition, but two races in particular have drawn statewide — and even national — attention.
In Eden Prairie, three-term Republican Rep. Jenifer Loon, a deputy minority leader in the House, has drawn a stiff challenge from GOP activist Sheila Kihne, in what may be the Legislature's most expensive primary. The race has already drawn more than $100,000 from donors outside the district, largely over Loon's earlier support of same-sex marriage.
In Minneapolis, a similar skirmish is underway among DFLers. Rep. Phyllis Kahn, who is seeking a 22nd term, is up against Mohamud Noor a Minneapolis school board member who has mobilized much of the local Somali community in a race that has divided the party. Kahn contends she has represented her increasingly diverse community well, while Noor says he is more in touch with the needs of the changing district.
Both legislative contests could alter the look and feel of the two parties. The Eden Prairie race could oust a Republican House leader in favor of someone more socially conservative, reopening the GOP debate on marriage. The Minneapolis race could end the career of one of the first women to serve in the Legislature, while ushering in the Capitol's first Somali-American lawmaker.
Loon was one of just four Republican House members to vote for legalizing same-sex marriage in the 2013 legislative session. One opted not to run for re-election, while another was ousted by party activists earlier in the season. Rep. Pat Garofalo of Farmington emerged unscathed.
For Loon, the fallout from that vote continues.
"This primary is about integrity. It's about leadership. And it's about what it means to be truly conservative," Autumn Leva, director of legislative affairs and communications for the Minnesota Family Council, said of the Loon/Kihne race. The Family Council, which waged a hard fight against gay marriage, has spent undisclosed sums to defeat Loon and support Kihne.