“Honestly there is a job that needs to be done that’s not getting done now,” Powers tells the Minnesota Independent. “I’m in a position where construction is pretty slow, I like politics and I honestly think I can get the job done.”

The Democrat believes that Kline has not served the residents of his suburban district well by unrealistically insisting that the country’s beleaguered health-care system be rebuilt from scratch. “You have to work with what you have,” he says. “I think that’s what most people are frustrated about.”

Powers also cites energy costs — and the need for more renewable sources of energy — as a primary issue motivating him to run. “It’s actually a national security issue,” he says. “We have to solve our energy problem.”

Few political observers expect Kline to be in much danger of losing re-election. Neither the Cook Political Report nor the Rothenberg Political Report include the second district race on their lists of competitive House races. In each of the last three election cycles, Kline has defeated his opponents by at least 14 percentage points. Last year he knocked of DFL challenger Steve Sarvi by a 57-43 percent margin.

But Powers argues that Kline is more politically vulnerable than at any other time since first being elected in 2002. He notes that a majority of the state legislative seats in the district are now controlled by Democrats.

Powers flirted with a run against Kline in 2008. But he dropped out of the contest early on after realizing that he wouldn’t be able to raise enough money to be competitive. This election cycle he hopes to prove himself a credible challenger by building up a significant campaign war chest in the coming months.

“The most important thing is just flat out raising the money,” he says. “Nobody’s going to take me seriously, or any other candidate seriously, if you can’t put some solid numbers behind the campaign.”

Two other Minnesota races make the list of competitive contests. The Third Congressional District seat being vacated by retiring Rep. Jim Ramstad continues to be viewed as a toss-up. And in the Sixth Congressional District freshman Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann is deemed favored to win re-election.

The Rothenberg Political Report released its latest Senate race rankings today. Sen. Norm Coleman’s re-election campaign is one of just three contests across the country deemed a toss-up. The other two are Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu’s post in Louisiana and the seat being vacated by Republican Sen. Wayne Allard in Colorado. Rothenberg’s assessment of the senate race in Minnesota is unchanged from its February rankings. Despite likely challenger Al Franken’s tax issues and lackluster poll numbers, national pundits still clearly view Coleman as a vulnerable incumbent.

Democrat Rep. Tim Walz’s seat is categorized as leaning Democratic, while fellow freshman Michele Bachmann’s post is viewed as slightly more secure for the Republican incumbent.

Minnesota’s five other congressional races don’t make the cut, meaning they’re seen as at little risk to the incumbent party. The most interesting omission: Republican Rep. John Kline’s seat in the Second Congressional District. Challenger Steve Sarvi will have to dramatically improve his political prospects in the coming weeks if the Democrats are going to mount a serious challenge to the three-term incumbent.