Ritchie picking up steam

Secretary of State candidate Mark Ritchie seems to be picking up steam–and endorsements. Just a day before Howard Dean comes to town to stump on his behalf (Coffman Union, 2:30 pm Thursday), Ritchie got the nod from the 100+year-old Albert Lea Tribune. The gist of their editorial:
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Incumbent Mary Kiffmeyer has played partisan politics with the office. She replaced many skilled and experienced staff members with cronies. The remaining staff was left frustrated by the inexperience and poor work ethic of the newcomers. As a result, many of the remaining staff left, too.

Nary an election filing season rolls around without candidates making noise over their troubles with her office. They say members of differing parties get differing answers. This practice has to stop.

….She turned a nonpartisan role