Rep. Phyllis Kahn fights to stay relevant as DFL pushes for new blood

Longtime state Rep. Phyllis Kahn has been one of the most reliably liberal voices at the State Capitol, blazing the way on everything from anti-smoking legislation to same-sex marriage to looser marijuana laws.

Now she finds herself under attack from an unlikely front — DFLers who want to see her swept aside for Ilhan Omar, a DFL activist with deep roots in the district's East African community.

With many of her biggest causes behind her, Kahn is fighting to stay relevant in a political climate where DFLers are eager to usher in their next generation of leaders.

"I do things two years at a time," said Kahn, 79, as she prepares for a primary fight. "I think I will know when I'm no longer thinking new thoughts or no longer paying attention to issues that no one else is paying attention to."

Kahn's four decades of experience at the Capitol has won her a small army of defenders who are pushing back against those who would rather nudge Kahn into retirement.

"I think it's an element of symbolism versus effective legislating," Sen. Dick Cohen, DFL-St. Paul, said of the choice between Kahn and Omar.

Kahn has already survived several tough fights with insurgent rivals, as recently as two years ago. Interparty election battles are a political reality in her eclectic Minneapolis district, a mix of wealthy residents, University of Minnesota students and a growing East African community.

"It gets to the point where someone says, 'Why is the DFL turning against [Kahn]?' " she said. "Well, it isn't."

Kahn retains strong backing from some of the state's most prominent DFLers: Gov. Mark Dayton, Lt. Gov. Tina Smith, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, along with endorsements from major labor unions.

Eliot Seide, executive director of AFSCME Council 5, said his union has supported Kahn for decades because of her leadership in supporting working-class people, women, and the LGBT community. He added that she's been an early and outspoken advocate for immigrant rights and against Muslim discrimination.

"Is Phyllis Kahn older at this point? You bet she is … but I challenge somebody who's 25 years old to have the energy that she does," Seide said.

House DFL Leader Paul Thissen of Minneapolis said that the difficult re-election fight "has less to do with Phyllis and … more to do with a desire for bringing new blood into the process."

"I think people would generally acknowledge that Phyllis has been and is a strong legislator and represents her community very well," Thissen said.

Still, Thissen would not commit to using campaign money to help Kahn win her primary. House DFLers, he said, need every dollar to help supplant Republicans as the majority in the House.

"Our main goal is to win back the majority, and holding a safe seat doesn't get us closer," Thissen said.

Kahn has been a groundbreaking feminist voice at the Capitol representing a reliably Democratic stronghold. She swept into the Capitol after her tough 1972 election win and fought to pass the Minnesota Clean Indoor Air Act, a landmark ban on smoking in public places that was among the first in the world.

Colleagues describe Kahn, a scientist before becoming a politician, as having a trove of institutional knowledge. They say she has been adept at pushing her ideas through the system by mastering quirks of legislative procedure.

She is also more physically active than many legislators, playing ice hockey and serving as a member of a biking group of female policymakers called the Hot Flashers.

Lately, Kahn has been playing up similarities with another brassy Brooklyn, N.Y., native, Bernie Sanders, who has built a passionate fan base for his presidential campaign on college campuses.

She has noted recently that she too grew up playing stickball in Brooklyn and that Sanders attended the high school where her mother taught.

"Bernie has called for the revolution. Well, guess what? I have been the revolution!" she said at her recent political convention.

Rep. Lyndon Carlson, DFL-Crystal, ties with Kahn for being the longest-serving legislator. When they both arrived at the Capitol in 1973, he recalled, Kahn immediately jumped into the debate on the House rules to prohibit smoking on the floor of the chambers.

"When she takes on an issue, she will truly pursue it and work very hard until she accomplishes her goals," he said. "Phyllis always has been, and continues to be, a very relevant player."

Kahn said that many of the big issues she is passionate about have already been addressed at the Legislature and that her political power has been somewhat diminished since the DFL lost control of the House. B

ut she said she is energized by new initiatives, like a measure that bans state agencies from buying supplies or services from people who fail to disclose information required under federal law relating to conflict minerals from the Congo.

Sen. Sandy Pappas, a longtime friend, said Kahn still works harder than many legislators.

"When we get a little older we slow down a little bit because we've been doing it for so many years," said Pappas, DFL-St. Paul. "But that just means we might slow down to a normal legislator's level instead of the energetic bunny level."

Pappas brushed aside a flash of controversy among DFLers after Kahn described Omar as younger and prettier.

"Phyllis is a little bit of a wisecracker," she said.

Maya Rao • 651-925-5043