Kelliher releases third TV ad, but hopes rely on ground game

DFL-endorsed gubernatorial candidate Margaret Anderson Kelliher has released a new TV ad titled “Stone,” the third ad of her campaign. The spot focuses on job creation, with Kelliher saying she will leave “no stone unturned,” listing support for small businesses, teaching math and science in schools and clean energy jobs as means of reviving Minnesota’s job market.

Kelliher was the last Democrat to hit the airwaves; her two opponents — millionaires Mark Dayton and Matt Entenza — have vastly outspent her in television time. But MinnPost reported today that Kelliher holds the edge in ground level organizing:

Kelliher’s field staff is the most robust of the three by far, aided by the DFL organizational infrastructure and resources garnered by her official endorsee status. Entenza has attempted to challenge that on-the-ground operation, led by Dave Colling, who directed Keith Ellison’s first campaign in 2006. Dayton’s “ground game” efforts seem to be dwarfed by the other two, but he has great name recognition and an archive of past voters and supporters that he’s relying on.

Beyond which candidate will face Tom Emmer in the general election, the results on August 10 may have wider ramifications for Minnesota’s electoral landscape. Kelliher is the traditional DFL candidate: She’s worked her way through the state House, worked her way up the leadership ladder and earned the party’s endorsement at the state convention. Dayton and Entenza on the other hand both lacked political office when they announced their gubernatorial bids, instead relying upon their personal wealth (and name recognition in Dayton’s case) to bypass the traditional party structure and go straight for the primary. If the local party organization can drive a win for Kelliher in two weeks, the party will likely maintain its prominent role in selecting its nominees. But if either Dayton or Entenza pull out a victory, the next nominating cycle will likely see an increase of outsiders running under the DFL banner.