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jim llanas - Latest Stories

Like Maplewood’s Llanas, gay candidates nationwide face anonymous attacks

By Andy Birkey | 10.29.09 | 2:55 pm

maplewoodflierAn anonymous flier in Maplewood last week targeting openly gay city council candidate Jim Llanas has raised a ruckus in advance of Tuesday’s city election. But the situation in Maplewood is not unique: LGBT candidates across the…

Election shenanigans heat up in Maplewood city council race

By Andy Birkey | 10.27.09 | 12:14 pm

With just under a week until the Maplewood city elections, the quirky politics of the suburb just north of St. Paul have taken some interesting turns. Dueling fliers that some residents have found “racist and homophobic” and a 911 recording of a candidate allegedly threatening a neighbor are among the more noteworthy occurrences.

‘Racist, homophobic’ campaign fliers distributed in Maplewood

By Andy Birkey | 10.21.09 | 2:29 pm

When Maplewood city council candidate Jim Llanas told the Minnesota Independent this summer, “Brace yourself. It’s just going to get ugly,” he wasn’t far off the mark. An anonymous flier being distributed about Llanas, who would be both the first openly gay and the first Hispanic city council member in the city’s history, is being described as racist and homophobic by a progressive group and a city council member.