Candidates make final push in DFL gov race

Margaret Anderson Kelliher and U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar greet diners at Midtown Global Market. Photo: Jon Collins

The morning’s early mugginess had blown out in a late morning storm, and DFL candidate for governor Margaret Anderson Kelliher was working her way through the tables of diners at the Midtown Global Market in south Minneapolis, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar at her side. Flanked by campaign workers, the pair sympathized with diners’ concerns, shrugged off indifference and soaked up praise, sometimes pausing to pose for pictures with supporters before moving on to the next table or vendor.

Kelliher and her opponents, Mark Dayton and Matt Entenza, are making a last-ditch effort to grab any remaining votes in the hard-fought contest for the DFL nomination for governor.

Kelliher, who is at a financial disadvantage compared to her two self-financed DFL opponents, and who largely pinned her election hopes on a grassroots turnout, was especially aggressive. After Midtown Market, Kelliher and her running mate, John Gunyou, were scheduled to make a showing at the Nurses Union phone bank in St. Paul, before retiring to Jax Cafe with U.S. Sen. Al Franken in St. Paul to watch returns.

Kelliher has trailed Dayton in recent polls, but her press secretary, Matt Swenson, said the campaign was optimistic that the polls have shifted, with Kelliher’s momentum during the debate making it a one-point race between Kelliher and Dayton. ”We were just at the campaign officies, every phone line at the campaign office was full, people were calling on their cell phones,” Swenson said. “We feel really good about today.”

Mark Dayton, who’s enjoyed a lead in most polls, cast his vote at 10:30 a.m., but planned to spend the day with his sons before joining supporters at his campaign headquarters to hear returns.  Dayton Campaign Manager Katharine Tinucci said volunteers were still working the phones and door-knocking.

But Matt Entenza managed to pack 12 meet-and-greets, mostly in the urban core, into his day. Jeremy Drucker, Entenza’s director of communications, said the campaign was focused on moving voters to the polls in this likely low turnout primary election. ”Matt has a long history in urban communities working for constituents of color, working for communities over on the north side and Rondo, the Latino communities and Somali communities,” Drucker said. These communities “have aways been a big part of our outreach, bringing new voters into the process.”

At Midtown Market, Kelliher and Klobuchar attracted some attention, although most diners, like in a primary election, ignored the red-shirted swirl of activity around the candidate, focusing on their pastry from Salty Tart or sandwich from Manny’s Tortas. Toni Gerard, who was eating lunch with a friend, had earlier been swayed by the campaign’s argument that Kelliher’s candidacy would be made up of historic firsts, as well as her approach to education.

“I’ve enjoyed watching Margaret’s career in the legislature, and I think she’s a great leader, and I’m hoping she’ll be our first female governor,” Gerard said, before noting: “Regardless of her gender, she’s an excellent leader.”

But just down the street at Hans Christian Anderson Open School, which was serving as Ward 9, Precinct 3, only a slow drip of voters made their way into the air-conditioned school, giving some credence to the campaigns’ optimism that, in the end, it could come down to just a few voters.