Oracle Online

State Senate District 66

The state senate seat for District 66 is going to be a battle of the Andersons. Democratic candidate Ellen Anderson has held the position since 1992, and looks to keep a stronghold in the very Democratic-leaning Midway. Republican challenger Warren Anderson, meanwhile, has been drumming up support by appearing at a Cambodian Republican fundraiser. Warren said that local Republicans have been more inclusive recently, making sure they reflect the communities they represent.

Ellen has a long list of endorsements, from Teamsters to the AFL-CIO. She was instrumental in garnering state funding for a new polar bear habitat at the Como Park Zoo and a new Como Park Visitor Center. Statewide, she was the author of the 2005 minimum wage increase. She also supports affordable education for all and renewable energy.

Warren also says he is strong on education, as well as public safety. He received an endorsement and an "A" grade from the National Rifle Association. In May, the Pioneer Press reported that he was opposed to a light rail between the Twin Cities, calling it fiscally irresponsible. He somewhat supported a personal rapid transit, a system of elevated cars, instead.

State House for District 66B

Democratic incumbent Alice Hausman, now in her ninth term, was first elected in 1989. Hausman sits on the Capital Investment and Transportation Finance committees and has been at the center of the light rail corridor controversy.

Joyce Nevins, the Republican candidate, is a former Girl Scout community badge leader and a registered nurse. Nevins advocates “only necessary” taxes and wants to limit the power of eminent domain.

Ramsey County Sheriff

Outside of places known for town squares and farming combines, the sheriff’s race rarely becomes this heated. The incumbent, police-endorsed Bob Fletcher, had his campaign office purportedly fired at. His opponent, Bill Finney, who is DFL-endorsed, is a former St. Paul police chief who claims that Fletcher abused his own ex-wife in the late-1990s.
Fletcher is best known for his attempts at cleaning up the Asian gang scene in St. Paul. A sheriff for 12 years, Fletcher helped form a Homeland Security unit in Ramsey County. At a recent debate, he suggested that the sheriff’s office should take a closer look at the cycle of delinquency.

“We have 520 criminals in our jail right now,” he said. “Seventy-five percent can’t read.”

Finney worked to rise through the ranks of the St. Paul police department, and it shows in his policy.

“I’m not going to negotiate with you to keep the peace,” Finney said, recalling a Minneapolis gang from the early 1990s willing to bargain. “You want to talk to my cops? My cops are going to talk to you any time you break the law. Take your gangs and leave the city. Be prepared to be taken down, and we did that.”

Most recently, Finney has publicly toyed with the idea of making sheriff an appointed position. 

Ramsey County Commissioner for District 3

District 3 encompasses the area from Falcon Heights through the Midway area to University Avenue.
Incumbent Janice Rettman is a veteran of over 11 years on the St. Paul City Council. Rettman is also chair of the Ramsey County Housing and Redevelopment Authority.

Ramsey County Commissioner for District 4

District 4 is the area south of University to Randolph and west toward Lauderdale.

DFL-endorsed Incumbent Toni Carter is the first black to hold a county board position in Minnesota. Carter has heavily advocated the light rail corridor in St. Paul and seeks a “holistic community-generated vision of a transit system” that “really meets people’s needs to get to good jobs, explore new avenues and remain connected to each other.” Before serving as a County Commissioner, Carter served over three years as a member and chair of the St. Paul Board of Education.