MINNEAPOLIS — Analysts say the biggest surprise of the election was the extent to which US Rep. Ilhan Omar came to lose her fifth congressional district seat.
Former Minneapolis City Council member Don Samuels came within 2 percentage points of beating Omar.
Other results broke along more predictable lines, including big wins for the establishment wing of the Minnesota Republican Party.
Omar and Samuels had major differences on public safety, with Omar supporting a referendum to dismantle and replace the Minneapolis Police Department. Samuels helped lead the successful fight against that referendum
In Minnesota’s 1st Congressional District, which spans southern Minnesota, voters have chosen Republican Brad Finstad to fill the remaining five months of the late Rep. Jim Hagedorn’s term.
Finstad, a New Ulm farmer and former Trump appointee, beat Democrat Jeffrey Ettinger by 4 percentage points. It was a better-than-expected performance for Ettinger, who she attributes to her support for abortion rights.
“I think it’s really aggravating, especially for a lot of women, to feel that the government is going to insert itself into this decision and potentially criminalize them and their doctors,” Ettinger said.
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Finstad, the Republican Party candidate, also won the primary against far-right candidate Jeremy Munson. It was a victory for the Republican establishment, which is also celebrating the victory of the party’s candidate Jim Schultz in the race for attorney general. Schultz convincingly defeated Doug Wardlow, a more conservative candidate. Schulz now faces Keith Ellison in the November election.
The primaries gave clarity to several local elections. The crowded field of seven candidates in the Hennepin County attorney’s race has been narrowed to two. Former Chief Public Defender Mary Moriarty got the most votes.
“I think this margin of victory reflects that there are a lot of shared values across Hennepin County. We need public safety, and we’re not going to get public safety unless we have reform.”
Moriarty will face what is expected to be a tough challenge in November from retired Judge Martha Holton Dimick. He would like to see youth detention centers expanded.
“People don’t want to hear that these kids have to be detained, but they are, at least for a period of time so we can address the trauma,” Holton Dimick said.
Brad Finstad, the newly elected lawmaker, said in a statement Wednesday: “Our country faces extraordinary challenges, but I am confident that we can come together to overcome them.”
Esme Murphy
