Democratic-Controlled Legislatures in the Spotlight, Facing Largest Budget Shortfalls Across the Nation
With new data expected to reveal an additional budget gap in the next economic forecast to be released by Gopher State finance officials this Wednesday, numbers recently released by the Center on Budget and [...]
Seven-state West North Central Geographical Division of the Midwest continues to have the lowest unemployment rate in the nation
Although Minnesota's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased to 7.6 percent for the month of October, the Gopher State's trend in jobless claims has generally been headed in the right [...]
Through six seasons Minnesota's MVP Catcher Rates Favorably With the Greatest Catchers in Major League Baseball History
The announcement of Joe Mauer's runaway victory as the American League's Most Valuable Player for 2009 on Monday gives Minnesota baseball fans something to celebrate in the off season, and raises [...]
While Republicans Erik Paulsen and Michele Bachmann are leading by a wide margin in the amount of funds raised overall by the Gopher State's U.S. House representatives and announced congressional candidates in the current election cycle, it is Bachmann's two DFL challengers, Maureen Reed and Tarryl Clark, [...]
The Center for the Study of Politics and Governance at the Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs has launched a new site on political news reporting by University of Minnesota students.
The first installment, a "watchdog" series on Minnesota politics, sees the debut of three new articles: one on Department [...]
After three consecutive months of a declining percentage of Minnesotans filing unemployment claims, the Gopher State's seasonally adjusted jobless rate increased to 7.6 percent in October - up from 7.4 percent in September.
Unemployment in Minnesota has increased 35.7 percent from one year ago (5.6 percent) but is [...]
Roll Call columnist and American Enterprise Institute resident scholar Norm Ornstein will speak at the Humphrey Institute on Friday to review the Obama administration's wide-ranging policy initiatives and their progress in Congress as the political winds appears rady to shift.
A Report From Washington
Norm Ornstein, Resident [...]
Tim Walz and 6th CD DFL Challengers Reed and Clark Receiving Early Support in 2009 from State's Politicians
Depending on the fundraising strategies pursued by and opportunities presented to U.S. House officeholders and candidates, some politicians seek to build their campaign warchests through individual contributions (e.g. Michele Bachmann,' [...]
More than Twice As Many Republican U.S. House Members from Minnesota Have Had Military Service than DFLers Since Merger in 1944
Dr. Maureen Hackett, a forensic psychiatrist who served three years overseas as a psychiatrist in the United States Air Force, announced her candidacy on Tuesday for the [...]
Early Poll, Though Omitting Candidates, Suggests Coleman's Wait-And-See Approach Is Working
A new Rasmussen poll of 330 likely Republican primary voters in the Gopher State finds 50 percent want former U.S. Senator Norm Coleman to be their nominee.
Or do they?
To the chagrin of several candidates running [...]
Scenario could also be best chance for 3rd party revival in Gopher State
With all apologies to those who believe any analysis of the 2012 presidential election is still too premature, a newly released Rasmussen poll measuring the job performance of some members of the Minnesota [...]
Bachmann, Paulsen, and Kline Outraising DFLers by Nearly $30,000 in DFL Districts and by More Than $600,000 in GOP Districts
A Smart Politics analysis of 2009 Federal Elections Commission (FEC) data through the first three quarters of 2009 finds that Republican U.S. Representatives Michele Bachmann and Erik Paulsen [...]
One Tiny Minnesota Suburb Is Responsible for More than 10 Percent of All In State Large Donor Funds Contributed to the State's Eight U.S. House Members
Where do Minnesota's U.S. House members get the biggest bang for their buck when looking to build their campaign warchests? Minneapolis? St. [...]
Majority of Blue Dogs, Democratic Representatives in '08 Pick-up Districts, and Democrats in Competitive Districts All Vote in Favor of Bill
One of the reasons political analysts suspected Democrats might face difficulty in passing health care reform in the House this year, was due to potential holdouts among' [...]
Only 6 Percent of Large Donor Funds from 5th CD Residents Have Gone to Ellison This Year
A Smart Politics analysis of 2009 Federal Elections Commission (FEC) data finds that DFL Congressman Keith Ellison has only received 6.4 percent of individual itemized funds contributed by members of his [...]
Region Supported Amendment Banning Abortion Services from Bill by 12-11 Vote
The Upper Midwestern U.S. House delegation contributed 13 of the 220 votes Democrats received to pass a health care bill Saturday night that will require every American to obtain health insurance.
Two regional Blue Dog Democrats defected from their [...]
Less than half utilized 2nd choice option in mayoral race; voter turnout down by 25,000+ from 2005
Although nearly two-thirds of Minneapolis voters approved the change to ranked choice voting in 2006, less than half actually utilized the option of ranking multiple candidates in the mayoral election Tuesday [...]
Despite GOP-endorsed mayoral candidate Eva Ng improving notably in the City of St. Paul Tuesday night vis-à-vis the performances of John McCain and Norm Coleman from a year ago, one-term incumbent Chris Coleman posted the strongest performance in a St. Paul mayoral race in nearly 25 years.
Coleman [...]
With a new (partially) taxpayer-funded stadium set to open for the 50th year of Minnesota Twins baseball next year, all eyes will be on the franchise to see what players they lock up to long-term contracts (e.g. Joe Mauer), what players they acquire via trades or the [...]
With the latest polls indicating Democrats may be headed for a double digit loss in the open Virginia gubernatorial contest as well as a fight for their life to hold onto New Jersey's gubernatorial seat, Republican strategists are touting Tuesday's two highest profile races as both a [...]
