VP BIDEN MINNEAPOLIS RALLY TICKETS

Only few tickets for Vice President Joe Biden remains. There are offices throughout Twin Cities metro that you can pick up tickets. 

Rally doors open at 10:30AM and it starts at 1:00PM at Depot in Downtown Minneapolis. 

Sooner the better before THEY RUN OUT! 

1. Minneapolis
2722 University Ave SE
Minneapolis, MN
minneapolis@ofamn.com
(612) 244-7872

2. Hopkins
1007 Main St
Hopkins, MN
hopkins@ofamn.com
(952) 221-1770

3. St. Paul
920A Selby Ave
Saint Paul, MN
stpaul@ofamn.com
(651) 492-0280

4. North Minneapolis
1505 West Broadway Ave
Minneapolis, MN

2012 Minnesota Legislature Retirement List

Here are list of Legislators who have announced retirements or running for other offices:


Running for Congress or US Senate:


Rep. Kurt Bills


Want to switch from House to Senate:


Torrey Westorm
Bobby Joe Champion
Bev Scalze 
Mary Kiffmeyer
Kent Eken
Branden Petersen
Connie Doepke 
Maria Ruud
Lyle Koenen (filed to run for Kubly's vacant seat)
Bruce Anderson
Carrie Ruud


Want to run for other office: 
Senator Linda Higgins- running for Hennepin County Board


Legislators who want to retire for good or maybe run again in future:


Rep. Larry Hosch
Rep. Kate Knuth
Rep. Mark Murdock
Rep. Pat Mazrol
Rep. Mindy Greiling 
Sen Keith Langseth
Sen. Amy Koch
Sen. Al DeKruif 
Sen. Chris Gerlach
Sen. Gen Olson
Sen. Doug Mangus 
Sen. Geoff Michel

Sen. Gary Kubly (announced he would retire but ended died while in office)
Rep John Krisel (he announced on KFAN on 3/15)

Undecided if losing endrosement of their respective parties when running for Congress or other offices:

Sen. Mike Parry- Running for Congress in 1st District.

Sen Gretchen Hoffman- Running for Congress in 7th District.

I will add more names to the list once I find out more people who is retiring.  If you know of anyone else is retiring or running for another office, send email to senatoreggert@yahoo.com. 

ATKINS ANNOUNCES RE-ELECTION BID, WILL NOT RUN FOR CONGRESS

State Rep. Joe Atkins finalized his decision to seek re-election to the Minnesota House at his daughter’s high school basketball game on Wednesday night. There had been wide speculation until now that Atkins would run for Congress in Minnesota’s newly-drawn 2nd Congressional District.

“I may or may not get more chances to run for higher office, but I only get one chance at being a good dad,” said Atkins. “Being in Washington, D.C. at this point would not allow me to be involved in my family and in our community as much as I would like.” Atkins and his wife, Julia, have three children, ages 18, 17 and 15.

Just prior to his daughter’s game on Wednesday, Atkins passed bipartisan legislation to the House floor to protect Minnesotans from sophisticated internet and telephone scams. The scams, which are tied to organized crime and have victimized over 100,000 Minnesotans so far, often target senior citizens and vulnerable adults. Atkins’s legislation is AARP’s top priority at the Capitol this session.

“My ability to pass important, bipartisan legislation, even as a member of the minority, was definitely a key factor in my decision to seek re-election to the Minnesota House,” Atkins said. With strong relationships on both sides of the aisle, Representative Atkins has passed more bipartisan legislation over the last four years than any other state representative, according to data compiled by non-partisan staff.

Rep. Atkins has passed bipartisan laws to improve fire safety, protect retirement accounts, decrease meth labs, and make college more affordable for middle-class families. For his efforts, he has earned a variety of awards, including being named “Legislator of the Year” by Minnesota’s firefighters. 

Atkins said he is kicking off his re-election campaign this weekend by going to door-to-door in Mendota Heights and Eagan, which were recently added to his legislative district, and will start door-knocking in Inver Grove Heights next weekend.

“That probably means we’ll finally get a foot of snow and it will be 20 below zero,” Atkins joked.

On Saturday night, though, Atkins will put politics aside. He’ll be sitting in the stands watching his daughter and the Simley girls basketball team in the section semifinals.

Rep. Greiling Retires After Long Career Focused on Education, Mental Health Reform

St. Paul, MN – Currently serving her 10th term, State Representative Mindy Greiling (DFL – Roseville) announced her retirement from the State Legislature today. Rep. Greiling will continue to serve until the end of the upcoming session. 

During her tenure, Rep. Greiling focused her legislative efforts on properly funding and reforming Minnesota’s public education system, serving as Chair of the House Education Finance Committee for four years and transitioning to DFL-Lead on the same committee in 2010. In addition to her work on education, Rep. Greiling was a strong legislative advocate for improving the way we perceive and treat mental health in Minnesota. 

“It has been my honor and privilege to serve the citizens of Senate District 54. Serving has enriched my life with a great sense of purpose for the common good. 

“I was proud to lead the legislative charge in the Minnesota House of Representatives to reform and properly fund our mental health system. We increased funding more than in any other legislative session in the history of our state. 

“However, I must honestly say, that I am leaving with a heavy heart that we now owe our public schools $3.45 billion, over $4,200 per student. I have been proud to author a sweeping education finance reform bill, developed by a broad coalition, which would properly fund schools at the state level and make the system fairer and more welcome to local innovations. I am hopeful to see enactment of this plan in the future. 

“While I announce my retirement today, I look forward to serving out the conclusion of my term. We still have much work to be done and I intend to continue fighting for the best interests of people.”

Rep. Barney Frank Won't Be Running For Re-Election

SOURCE: MINNESOTA PUBLIC RADIO

by Eyder Peralta, National Public Radio

November 28, 2011

(This post was retopped at 2:20 p.m. ET.)

Barney Frank, one of the most passionate liberals in Washington and the first member of Congress to openly acknowledge being gay, announced today that he will not seek a 17th term.

The 71-year-old lawmaker, who in recent years was best known for legislation aimed at tightening regulations on Wall Street and toughening consumerprotections, said redistricting in Massachusetts would have meant he would need to spend too much time introducing himself to new constituents before next November's election and not enough on the issues he cares about.

We began this post at 10 a.m. ET. Read through to see how the story developed and our earlier updates:

10 a.m. ET: WBUR in Boston reports it has confirmed that Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) will not seek re-election in 2012.

CNN says that "Frank, a 16-term Democrat, will announce Monday he does not intend to seek re-election in 2012, according to a statement from [his] office."

Back in February, Frank announced he would run again in 2012, saying he wanted to "defend the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act" that he helped enact and wanted to work to "reduce significantly America's swollen, unnecessary, worldwide military footprint." It isn't known yet why he's apparently reversed course.

Watch It's All Politics for more on this.

Update at 11:52 p.m. ET. Frank Will Announce Decision Today:

The New York Times reports that Frank will announce his decision at a 1 p.m. ET. press conference in Newton, Mass.

The Times adds that one of the fiercest liberals in the House is retiring after facing one his toughest reelection campaigns in 2010. The 2012 election has gotten even tougher for him after redistricting:

His Fourth District falls mostly in southern Massachusetts but also includes the famously liberal Boston suburbs of Newton and Brookline. Under a new redistricting plan that Gov. Deval Patrick, a fellow Democrat, signed into law last week, Mr. Frank's district would have lost heavily Democratic city of New Bedford and gained some more conservative towns.

Update at 12:02 p.m. ET. A Bit Of Biography:

The Boston Globe has a bit of Frank's biography:

Former party head Philip W. Johnston told the Globe: "He was brilliant, funny, acerbic, strategic, and unashamedly liberal. And they're in short supply these days."

Frank, 71, was raised in New Jersey but schooled at Harvard University and Harvard Law School, endowing him with a street-fighter's mouth and an academic's wit.

He was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1972 and the US House eight years later. In 1987, he became the first member of the chamber to voluntarily acknowledge he was gay. Two years later, he was involved in a scandal in which a live-in boyfriend operated a gay prostitute service from his home. The House ended up reprimanding Frank for the incident.

More recently, he has been one of President Obama's most important allies but also a target of Republicans. They accuse him of helping create the country's housing collapse by pushing the government and banks into approving loans to unqualified buyers.

In 2008, Frank was one of the writers of the Wall Street bailout, known as TARP. In 2010, as chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, he co-wrote and assured passage of "Dodd-Frank," which enacted major Wall Street regulatory reforms.

Update at 1 p.m. ET. It's Official; Frank Says Redistricting Is The Reason:

The congressman is holding a news conference right now, and WBUR is webcasting here. As it reported earlier, "Massachusetts lawmakers just redrew Frank's current 4th Congressional District, making it larger and eliminating New Bedford, where he held a lot of support." The 71-year-old lawmaker says that running for re-election in a district that is "half new" would have required that he spend a lot of time introducing himself to new constituents. Instead, he says, he wants to concentrate for the next year on defending the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and making the case that deficit reduction requires raising taxes on the wealthy and trimming defense spending as well as other sacrifices.

Quist making another run for Congress

SOURCE: MPR CAPITOL VIEW 

Allen Quist is making another run for Congress in Minnesota's 1st Congressional District. He is scheduled to formally announce his intentions on December 1, according to a letter he sent to GOP activists. The letter, obtained by MPR News, has a banner that says "Allen Quist for Congress, 'Restoring the American Dream."

"I am announcing to you that I will become a candidate for First District Congress," Quist's letter to activists said. "I intend to announce on December 1."

The letter said Quist will be making campaign stops in Winona, Rochester, Austin, Albert Lea and Owatonna on Thursday. He'll campaign in Mankato, New Ulm, Fairmont and Worthington on Friday. Quist's wife, Julie Quist, declined to answer questions about the letter when contacted by MPR News.

"Allen will be announcing a decision next Thursday, December 1st, in Winona at 8:00 am," Julie Quist wrote in an e-mail "He won't be doing any interviews before that time."

In his letter, Quist said he's making another run for Congress because "grassroots Republicans have encouraged him to run." He also said the country needed "leaders who understand that our country is being taken over a cliff."

Quist lost the GOP endorsement in 2010 to Randy Demmer. He also made two unsuccessful runs for governor in 1994 and 1998. He won the GOP endorsement for governor in 1994 but lost in the primary to incumbent Gov. Arne Carlson. Quist also served in the Minnesota House from 1983 until he retired in 1989.

Quist's decision means there will be an endorsement battle to see who will be the party's eventual nominee. Another Republican, state Sen. Mike Parry of Waseca, is also running.

The eventual GOP nominee is expected to square off with DFL Rep. Tim Walz. Walz was first elected in 2006.

The big question mark is how the court draws the new political boundaries for Minnesota's 1st Congressional District. The current district extends across the southern border from South Dakota to Wisconsin. It includes Rochester, Worthington, Mankato, Albert Lea, Austin, Owatonna and Winona.

A court appointed panel will release the new political boundaries on Feb. 21 if Gov. Dayton and the GOP-controlled Legislature can't reach agreement before then. The process known as redistricting requires every district to be equal population based on the once a decade population count by the U.S. Census.

(MPR's Rupa Shenoy contributed to this report)

State Rep. Bobby Joe Champion announces plans to seek Senate seat.

St. Paul-- State Rep. Bobby Joe Champion (DFL- Minneapolis) announced his intention to seek the Senate District 58 Seat being vacated by Sen. Linda Higgins (DFL- Minneapolis).

"I am inspired by my Senator, and I wish her all the best as she continues to advocate for the people of Minnesota. I can only hope to continue her work and represent the needs and values of our district in the State Senate.”

“We cannot continue to take out loans on our children’s futures to pay for the services we need today, “ Champion said. “We need an education system that gives all kids the opportunity to succeed; budget policies that ask the wealthiest Minnesotans to pay their fair share; equal access to quality health care; improvements in our affordable housing; and smart investments in economic development and jobs. I look forward to bringing my voice to the Senate just as I’ve done in the House.”

Champion was first elected to the Minnesota House in 2008, and said he is eager to continue fighting for a better Minnesota, with a priority on using balanced budget approaches.

Outside serving in the Minnesota House, Champion meets the needs of his community as an attorney, with a focus on family law and juvenile justice. Champion lives in the Lyn Park neighborhood in Minneapolis with his wife Dr. Angela Champion and their children.

Dahle announces he'll run for state Senate in 2012 UPDATED

SOURCE: NORTHFIELD NEWS

By SUZANNE ROOK, srook@northfieldnews.com

11/6/2011

Former state Sen. Kevin Dahle (DFL), of Northfield, announced today that he's running to reclaim a seat in the Legislature.

"I believe in possibilities," Dahle wrote on his website.

If elected, Dahle, 51, said he’d look to “compromise and work together,” two things he says were noticeably absent in the current Legislature and highlighted by July’s nearly three-week state government shutdown.

Dahle isn’t the only one to criticize the K-12 education funding shift approved in July. By essentially borrowing from the schools, opponents of the plan have said that the state hasn’t yet learned to live within its means.

“There were a lot of short-term bad solutions (approved by the 2011 Legislature),” he said.

While Dahle, a Northfield High School social studies teacher, is particularly interested in the K-12 funding shift, the economy would be his first priority.

Dahle said he’d also like to give a voice to issues important to Northfield, particularly taxes for properties in historic business districts and lifting a gag order on the Dan Patch railroad line.

"I believe we can meet the challenges and maximize the opportunities that lay before us. What will break the people of Minnesota is not adversity – we’ve been here before … what will break our spirit is thinking that tomorrow is going to be just like yesterday. If we think that government cannot change that which is broken, we lose interest, we lose faith, we lose the people…but worst of all, we lose the future."

Dahle was beaten last November by Republican Al DeKruif of Elysian. In a three-way race, DeKruif took 44.7 percent of the vote to Dahle's 42 percent. Montgomery's John Grimm, who ran as an independent, got 13.2 percent of the vote.

Dahle was elected in a January 2008 special election to fill the seat of former state Sen. Tom Neuville after Neuville was appointed a Third District judge.

Whether Dahle will face off against DeKruif in November isn't yet known. While DeKruif hasn't yet announced his intent to run he'll run, the shape District 25 will take is also in question. Every district in the state is expected to be reconfigured in the coming months as a part of a decennial reapportionment following the 2010 U.S. Census.

The current redistricting plan, put forward in May 2010 by the Legislature, splits Rice County lengthwise generally along I-35. Called Senate district 22, it includes the eastern portion of Steele County along with small eastern sections of Goodhue and Olmstead counties.

Redistricting is expected to be complete by Feb. 21, according to a state Legislature timeline.

The primary is set for Aug. 14. The general election will be held next Nov. 6.

* * * *

UPDATED: SUNDAY 6:18 P.M.

Former state Sen. Kevin Dahle (DFL), of Northfield, announced today that he's running to reclaim a seat in the Legislature.

"I believe in possibilities," Dahle wrote on his website.

If elected, Dahle, 51, said he’d look to “compromise and work together,” two things he says were noticeably absent in the current Legislature and highlighted by July’s nearly three-week state government shutdown.

Dahle isn’t the only one to criticize the K-12 education funding shift approved in July. By essentially borrowing from the schools, opponents of the plan have said that the state hasn’t yet learned to live within its means.

“There were a lot of short-term bad solutions (approved by the 2011 Legislature),” he said.

While Dahle, a Northfield High School social studies teacher, is particularly interested in the K-12 funding shift, the economy would be his first priority.

Dahle said he’d also like to give a voice to issues important to Northfield, particularly taxes for properties in historic business districts and lifting a gag order on the Dan Patch railroad line.

"I believe we can meet the challenges and maximize the opportunities that lay before us. What will break the people of Minnesota is not adversity – we’ve been here before … what will break our spirit is thinking that tomorrow is going to be just like yesterday. If we think that government cannot change that which is broken, we lose interest, we lose faith, we lose the people…but worst of all, we lose the future."

Dahle was beaten last November by Republican Al DeKruif of Elysian. In a three-way race, DeKruif took 44.7 percent of the vote to Dahle's 42 percent. Montgomery's John Grimm, who ran as an independent, got 13.2 percent of the vote.

Dahle was elected in a January 2008 special election to fill the seat of former state Sen. Tom Neuville after Neuville was appointed a Third District judge.

Whether Dahle will face off against DeKruif in November isn't yet known. While DeKruif hasn't yet announced his intent to run he'll run, the shape District 25 will take is also in question. Every district in the state is expected to be reconfigured in the coming months as a part of a decennial reapportionment following the 2010 U.S. Census.

The primary is set for Aug. 14, 2012. The general election will be held next Nov. 5.

* * * *

Former state Sen. Kevin Dahle (DFL), of Northfield, announced today on his website that he'll try and reclaim a seat in the Legislature.

"I believe in possibilities," Dahle wrote. "I believe we can meet the challenges and maximize the opportunities that lay before us. What will break the people of Minnesota is not adversity – we’ve been here before…what will break our spirit is thinking that tomorrow is going to be just like yesterday. If we think that government cannot change that which is broken, we lose interest, we lose faith, we lose the people…but worst of all, we lose the future."

Dahle was beaten in November 2010 by Republican Al DeKruif of Elysian. In a three-way race, DeKruif took 44.7 percent of the vote to Dahle's 42 percent. Montgomery's John Grimm, who ran as an independent, got 13.2 percent of the vote.

Dahle, 51, is a social studies teacher at Northfield High School.

Whether Dahle will face off against DeKruif in November isn't yet known. While DeKruif hasn't yet said he'll run for re-election, the shape District 25 will take is also in question. Every district in the state is expected to be reconfigured in the coming months as a part of a decennial reapportionment following the 2010 U.S. Census.

Stay with Northfield News for the latest on this story.

IT IS OFFICIAL FORMER STATE SENATOR DAHLE IS RUNNING AGAIN

Former State Senator Kevin Dahle during 2010 Special Session (Picture by Rach Eggert) 

Former State Senator Kevin Dahle want to make comeback to Minnesota State Senate after losing election in 2010. He made it official on his campaign website:

LET’S RECLAIM OUR VOICE!

Published On: 2nd November 2011 | Published By: Kevin Dahle For Senate

Just about a year from now, we will cast votes for the President, a U.S. Senator, numerous county and city offices, and a new Minnesota legislature. I am announcing my plans to, once again, run for a seat in the Minnesota Senate. This election is not about getting my “old seat back.” This election is about reclaiming a voice for Senate District 25 and all Minnesotans. The current party in power in the Minnesota legislature fails to listen. This past summer’s government shutdown proved they are more concerned about their party platform than the constituents who elected them. I worry about the tone of today’s politics and our basic priorities.
We talk about recession…yet ignore the needy
We talk about test scores…while ignoring educational funding.
We talk about wanting quality health care, yet over 400,000 Minnesotans go without.
We talk about local control, yet we starve our cities and counties.
We talk about Republicans and Democrats yet we forget about Minnesotans
I believe the basics include a job, a quality education, affordable college, a clean and healthy environment, equality for all, and a right to grow old with dignity.
We are facing a critical time in Minnesota. We can no longer allow extreme political agendas to divide us — the success of our state and our communities depends on our ability to find common ground on many critical issues.
We can do this together. When we stop working together government ceases to work. Again, let’s make Minnesota proud!

Yes, he is running and want his job back at the Capitol. His campaign website is http://www.kevindahle.net/. He is Social Studies teacher and lives in Northfield besides served in Senate for one term after winning special election in 2008 to replace Senator Tom Neuville who was appointed to be Judge by Former Governor Tim Pawlenty.