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5th District: Jon Olson


SNAPSHOT
Though the U.S. Senate race seemed to hold the most promise for a close race, it was the governor's race in Minnesota that grabbed the election-night headlines. Incumbent Tim Pawlenty held onto his office by just 22,000 votes over DFLer Mike Hatch. But Pawlenty saw his GOP colleagues swept out of office. In the Senate race, DFLer Amy Klobuchar easily beat Rep. Mark Kennedy.

The retirement of Sen. Mark Dayton sparked early interest in the campaign, with Rep. Mark Kennedy jumping in early. But a year later, Kennedy emerged as the lone Republican for the job, and Hennepin County Attorney Amy Klobuchar's strength was forcing several Democrats, including Patty Wetterling, out of the race.

The Senate race immediately attracted national attention, but as Klobuchar surged ahead of Kennedy in the polls, much national attention turned to the 6th District, where Patty Wetterling and state Sen. Michele Bachmann were the major contenders. Bachmann beat Wettlerling. It was Wetterling's second straight loss in the district. In the 5th, Rep. Keith Ellison became the first Muslim congressman. And in the 1st, incumbent Gil Gutknecht was defeated by DFLer Tim Walz.
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Ellison campaigned heavily against the war in Iraq and has put environmental and health care issues at the top of his list of priorities. (11/08/2006)
Democrat Keith Ellison was elected as the nation's first Muslim member of Congress on Tuesday, easily winning a Minneapolis-area district Republicans had not carried since 1962. He is also Minnesota's first nonwhite representative in Washington. (11/07/2006)
In less than a week, voters in Minnesota's 5th District will elect a new representative to Congress for the first time in nearly three decades. (11/01/2006)
U.S. Rep. Martin Sabo's retirement this year created something of a rarity: an open seat in Congress. With less than three weeks unil the election, Midday listeners get a chance to meet the candidates hoping to take Sabo's place. (Midday, 10/20/2006)
Democratic congressional candidate Keith Ellison is accusing a St. Louis Park woman of working with a Minneapolis writer to blackmail his campaign. (10/19/2006)
The three major party candidates for the 5th Congressional District seat met for a debate Tuesday evening at a St. Louis Park synagogue. DFLer Keith Ellison, Republican Alan Fine and Independence Party candidate Tammy Lee were asked their views on health care, the war in Iraq and the United States' relationship with Israel. (10/18/2006)
In Minnesota's 5th Congressional District, Muslims are speaking with a newly found political voice. (10/13/2006)
Alan Fine, the Republican candidate for Congress in the 5th District, was charged with domestic violence in 1995 for allegedly assaulting his wife, and he later had his record expunged. Fine reacted angrily to a Star Tribune report about the incident, saying he is innocent. (10/07/2006)
The three major-party candidates running for Congress in Minnesota's 5th Congressional District met in their first debate since Tuesday's primary. (09/15/2006)
Alan Fine is trying to do what Keith Ellison's DFL rivals couldn't: capitalize on reports of Ellison's past. Fine calls Ellison "unfit" to serve. (09/13/2006)
The seat has been dominated by DFLers for decades, but Ellison's Republican opponent in November says he'll question Ellison's character, a campaign theme that was used over the summer by Ellison's DFL opponents. (09/13/2006)
As the primary election nears, two of the DFLers running for Congress in Minnesota's 5th District say one of their opponents, Mike Erlandson, has gone negative. Erlandson sent out a mailing asking voters if Keith Ellison is above the law, and if Ember Reichgott Junge is out of touch with the district. (09/07/2006)
Former DFL Party Chair Mike Erlandson is touting the endorsement of one of the leading critics of the war in Iraq in an attempt to distinguish himself among the DFLers running for Minnesota's 5th Congressional District seat. (09/01/2006)
Midday hosts a live Minnesota State Fair debate between four of the DFL candidates hoping to succeed U.S. Rep. Martin Sabo in the House of Representatives. (Midday, 08/24/2006)
The DFL candidates in Minnesota's 5th Congressional District are busy campaigning just weeks before primary election day. Four of them will appear at debate at the Minnesota State Fair with the hopes of attracting DFL support. (08/24/2006)