Munson tries to ignite late primary challenge to First District GOP frontrunner

WASHINGTON — GOP state Rep. Jeremy Munson is making a last-minute campaign push to challenge endorsed Republican candidate Brad Finstad two weeks ahead of the primary in southern Minnesota's First Congressional District.

Munson isn't a choice in the Aug. 9 special election in which voters under the old First District lines will make their pick between Finstad and former Hormel Foods CEO Jeff Ettinger, a DFLer, to fill the final few months of the late GOP Rep. Jim Hagedorn's term.

But Munson is on the ballot for a separate contest that same day — a regular Republican primary to decide who will be on the November general election ballot. Voters will then elect someone to represent the redrawn district for a full two-year term. Early voting has been going on for weeks, and Finstad and Munson are the only two GOP candidates on the Aug. 9 primary ballot.

In a statement, Munson said that "over the last few weeks Brad has failed to show he's the conservative to fight inflation."

"Right now more than ever, we need someone who's a committed fiscal conservative," Munson said in a follow-up interview, saying Congress should slow government spending. "Brad's not the right candidate to do that."

Finstad's campaign said in response on Tuesday that he "is endorsed by the Minnesota Republican Party and is running an aggressive campaign to keep Joe Biden from getting a rubber stamp vote for his liberal agenda from Jeff Ettinger."

"We're confident Brad will win the Republican primary again as well as the special general election on August 9," said David FitzSimmons, Finstad's campaign spokesman, in an e-mail.

Munson said he believes people in the new First District should have a say in which candidate they want on the ballot this fall. The district wasn't dramatically redrawn in the once-a-decade redistricting process, but the new map includes the counties of Goodhue and Wabasha. Voters in those two counties were not able to cast ballots in the May special primary, because that contest was open only to people within the old First District boundaries.

Munson lost the May special primary to Finstad by 427 votes out of more than 35,000 cast for Republican candidates. He quickly conceded the contest, saying in a statement a day after the election that "exiting politics brings the reward of important time with my daughters, family vacations, and lower stress."

But Munson quietly filed for the Aug. 9 primary about a week later. The decision to file in the August race was publicly rebuked by David Hann, the chairman of the Minnesota Republican Party.

In a statement Tuesday, Hann urged people to vote for Finstad, saying he "is a true conservative and represents all Republicans in the 1st Congressional District."

"It is disappointing that Jeremy Munson chose to continue his personal agenda of fighting with fellow Republicans instead of uniting against the Biden-Pelosi Democrat agenda," Hann said.

Munson said his first few days after the May contest were "an emotional roller coaster." And despite running against Finstad in the Aug. 9 primary, Munson conceded that he will vote for Finstad in the special election happening that same day.

Munson's long-shot push in the August race is the latest twist in a complicated cycle for what was once seen as a swing district. Hagedorn's death in February upended the political dynamics in southern Minnesota and resulted in two races — a special election and a normal midterm election — playing out at the same time.

During his statehouse tenure, Munson was one of the first members of a conservative breakaway caucus called the New House Republican Caucus and was among a half-dozen GOP state legislators who attended a Jan. 6, 2021, "Storm the Capitol" rally in St. Paul to protest Democratic President Joe Biden's victory. Munson said earlier this year that he doesn't believe Biden "won a legitimate election," voicing a falsehood that persists within the GOP.

Munson was endorsed by GOP U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz and Rand Paul during his May primary run. The most recent round of campaign finance reports shows Munson with around $209,000 in cash to spend but also debt of $200,000 from a loan he made to his own campaign in March.

But even with little time left, Munson, who is not seeking re-election to his statehouse seat, sees an opportunity for the August primary to have a different outcome than the May contest.

"Without having 10 people on the ballot and having a different district, different counties, and different people voting in this election, we may have different results," Munson said.