Second District Roundup

By Jeff Fecke
Tuesday, November 07, 2006 at 8:00 am

Editor’s Note: This space will contain live coverage from the Coleen Rowley (DFL) campaign and other news from the 2nd CD, and will be updated throughout the day.

It’s pretty clear this will not be Rowley’s night; she appears set to fall by double digits. That’s not altogether surprising, as the second is hostile territory for a Democrat.

3:20 PM

What motivates campaign stalwarts to stand out on a dreary Tuesday, holding an enormous banner at the busiest intersection in Dakota County? A Coleen Rowley supporter who identified herself as Sandy was blunt.

“[Rowley] is probably the most wonderful person I’ve ever met,” she said. “She’s got ethics. She’s got values. I’d do this if it was 30 below and snowing.”

3:15 PM–Coleen Rowley is upbeat about her campaign–no matter what the end result is today. The full interview is here.

1:37 PM–A 20-person strong banner brigade–including Coleen Rowley–is at the corner of Cedar Avenue and County Road 42, trying to drum up support from passing motorists.

8:00 AM–The second congressional district enters election day embroiled in controversy, which is appropriate given the campaign thus far. The campaign of Democrat Coleen Rowley has alleged that someone tied to the Republican party has been calling voters in the district, trying to confuse and mislead Democratic voters–an allegation similar to many made by Democrats throughout the country. It is a bizarre end to a campaign that has been marked by hostility between the two campaigns.
Though Rep. John Kline (R-MN02) was widely considered safe this year, Rowley was considered an attractive candidate. A former FBI agent and 9/11 whistleblower, Rowley had a national presence and at least the potential to push Kline.

And the Kline campaign has taken no chances. Early in the race, they raised eyebrows by sending out a mass mailing attacking Rowley staffer David Bailey’s views on drug decriminalization. It was an aggressive move, one that suggested Kline might be in more trouble than initially thought.

Kline also had his own problem with a staffer, when his District Director, Mike Osskopp, was caught on tape using a racial slur to describe Japanese cars. Osskopp was forced to apologize.

Polls have swung widely; while polls currently show an 18% advantage for Kline, they’ve been as close as 8% in the last month.

It would be a big upset for Rowley to win tonight, but it’s not out of the question; with the right DFL wave, it just might happen. Regardless, it’s been a much more interesting race than was expected.