WoMN Focus

She’s signed the papers, and she’s ready to run for governor!

See her campaign website here.

From the press release:

Over the past few months I have traveled the state talking to Minnesotans just like you. Today, with the support of my family, friends and people across the state, I took the first step to become our next governor by filing the necessary paperwork to run.

Growing up on a southern Minnesota dairy farm, I learned at a young age there is always more work to be done. The same could be said for our state right now. Our economy has been battered by the global recession and many families are worried about job losses, wage cuts and the ever-rising cost of health care.

Minnesota’s next governor faces tough challenges. We need a leader who understands the task in front of us, and who knows it will take more than one person to rebuild our state. That’s the experience, and the commitment, I will bring as Minnesota’s governor. It took more than one person to finally break through and improve the safety and quality of Minnesota’s bridges and roads. I built a coalition of people who did not always see eye-to-eye, but were ready to find common ground and work together. It took more than one person to pass Minnesota’s nation-leading renewable energy standard. Together, we made Minnesota a leader in the green economy.

Now as we look ahead, the challenges are real, but our path forward is clear. As Minnesota’s next governor and with your support, we will make Minnesota a world economic leader, build a healthier, more productive workforce and provide every child from pre-kindergarten through college the opportunity for a great education.

In a few weeks, I will formally announce my candidacy. It will take more than one person to win the DFL endorsement and this election. It will take a coalition of people who believe in Minnesota and our ability to succeed. I’m asking you to take the next step in making me our next governor.

Politics in Minnesota does their latest at a glance of the Minnesota 2010 governor’s race, with a hot or not snapshot of both parties.

Not hot, according to PIM? Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher. And, with such a flattering write-up, that may not be such a bad thing:

WHO’S NOT

DFL: Margaret Anderson Kelliher

A few months ago, there were many at the Capitol who thought Kelliher could claim the DFL endorsement without breaking a sweat. We’ve been a little shocked at the vehemence with which her role in the end-of-session dynamics at the Legislature this year has been condemned by people in and around the gubernatorial race. To hear some of them tell it, her failed tactical judgment–and her lack of composure when the unallotment bomb was first dropped–have damaged her not-yet-announced candidacy past repair.

As the lone candidate from DFL legislative leadership, she’s bound to take that heat. But we would argue that if Kelliher’s stock was artificially inflated before the end of the legislative session, it’s artificially depressed now. She’s still a leading endorsement contender for several reasons. Kelliher is one of the most visible, connected, and publicly liked people in the Legislature. As a farm girl who now represents one of the toniest districts in the Twin Cities, she sports a personal biography that straddles the town-and-country divide, and her style reflects that. As a woman who is very popular with female pols and organizations, she has built enormous goodwill and fundraising potential in advance of a race in which many Democrats want to see a woman running. (Susan Gaertner, the other DFL woman in the field, appears to have far less traction on this front.)

If this is the “not” I can’t wait to see what people write about her when she’s on the “hot” list.

Via Eric Black, in a list of who will and will not abide by the DFL endorsement for governor, he puzzled out what he calls the “gender factor”:

The gender factor
It may also be noteworthy that the two women currently seeking (in the case of Gaertner, who has been a declared candidate for many months) or planning to seek (in the case of Kelliher) the nomination have made firm pledges to abide.

It is widely assumed, and for good reason, that whatever happens at the convention, Dayton and Entenza will be running in the primary. If the endorsee is neither of them but is a male, that would put a three-man field in the primary. Minnesota has never had a woman as governor, nor even as a major-party nominee for governor. There are certainly activists and donors, in Minnesota and nationally, who would be anxious to see that streak broken. A primary pitting one female candidate against three males would bring some favorable math into the picture for the woman.

Gaertner is generally not rated as a top-five candidate for endorsement, but Kelliher is. If she wins the endorsement, she will presumably face at least two wealthy male candidates who plan to run in the primary and perhaps others. In that scenario, the gender math would work in her favor, as well as the advantages of being the endorsee. By pledging to abide, she presumably increases her chance of being the endorsee. But by pledging to abide, she also forgoes the opportunity to potentially enter a primary without the endorsement but in a lineup that could be favorable to lone female against two or three or even more men.

I believe that Eric is likely right — in a three-way race between Dayton, Entenza and Anderson-Kelliher, she would be very hard to stop, as Dayton and Entenza would have a lot in common in regards not just to gender, but also the impression they would make on voters with predominately self-financed campaigns.

But I’m not sure it would still be the same if she did not get the endorsement, assuming there was another candidate who did get it. As we learned from watching the 5th CD primary in 2006, the more people who enter the primary, the more important the endorsement becomes. Erlandson thought his connections and money could get him through despite Ellison’s endorsement, but he and Ostrow never got very far on primary night. And despite being the only woman in the race, Ember Reichgott Junge only ended up with I think 20% overall. Without the primary endorsement, it really is in her best interest to stay as speaker for now, rather than challenge the endorsee in a primary.

Of course, if there is no endorsement, I think all bets will be off for everyone..,.

Eric Black says yes.

I confirmed the choice of Jaime Tincher with Speaker [Anderson Kelliher] Sunday evening. Although she remains an unannounced candidate, the exchange, and the selection of a campaign manager, left little doubt that the speaker is moving forward and not being particularly mysterious about it.

Tincher has until recently been manager of the DFL’s Coordinated Campaign. She has given notice to the party that she is leaving that job. She and the speaker have not signed a contract and as a legal matter there is, for now, no Margaret for governor campaign committee.

Via Polinaut:

DFL state Sen. Tarryl Clark told me today that she’s considering a run for governor in 2010. She said she’s looking at her options but said she’s concerned that none of the DFL candidates are from the “growth areas” of the state.

Scheck also has his list of potential gubernatorial candidates. Of the 20 Republicans who have not ruled out runs, 1/4 of them are female candidates (Laura Brod, Pat Anderson, Michele Bachmann, Carol Molnau, and Michelle Fischbach). Of the 12 DFLers running, considering, or at least not saying no, 1/4 of those are women as well (Susan Gaertner, Margaret Anderson Kelliher, Tarryl Clark).

Minnesota has never elected a woman governor, and now we have a 1 in 4 chance of making it happen. I couldn’t be more excited.

WoMN Focus will be watching every step of the way.

Via Minnpost:

Gaertner spoke of “stewardship” of the land and enforcing environmental laws. Kelley showed off his technical knowledge, what with his position as the director of the Humphrey Institute’s Center for Science, Technology and Public Policy.

Anderson Kelliher reminded folks of her agri-roots and her deer-hunting capabilities. Marty detailed his long environmental record, blasted big-energy lobbyists and called for 25-cent mass transit tickets.
….
And then there’s that other unannounced candidate, Madam Speaker A-K. She began the night saying, with a smile, that she is “exploring the possibility of running for governor,” and then proceeded to speak with energy about storing wind and solar energy, said she was prepared to “stick with the tough conversations” about economic development and touted her holistic message that education drives her entire vision, mentioning the power of two-year colleges in the state and declaring, “Science should lead us.”

Sometimes it sounded as if she were running against Pawlenty, who, I believe, isn’t running for re-election. More than a couple times she was critical of what “we haven’t had in Minnesota recently.”

No, she told MinnPost after the panel discussion, she wasn’t running against the ghost of the governor. She was running against an era of “self-interested politics” and what she views as “a slide towards mediocrity.” She’s seeking a “return to prosperity.”

Meanwhile, like Marco Polo, Ponce de Leon and Ann Bancroft, Anderson Kelliher is just “exploring” these days. Right.

Read the full post here.

When asked if she would need to step down from her leadership position to run for governor, like former Minority Leader Marty Seifert did last week, she responded that as a mother, she has the ability to multitask.

(I appear to be having problems with the audio embed, but you can listen here.)

We can only assume that the governor’s race will come up.

Listen here at 11 am.

Via Polinaut:

“I continue to have experiences like last night where my daughter and I were out for her birthday, and a random person comes up to me and says I hope you run for governor,” Kelliher said. “So, I am weighing those inquires that are daily very seriously.”

Kelliher says she thinks candidates will have to be in the race by this fall.

Looks like in my last post my idea of timing is all wrong. And here I thought everyone would want to be declared before the 4th so they can march in parades and then shake hands at the Fair.

And all signs point to his future plans being an exploratory committee for Pawlenty 2012, rather than seeking a third term as governor.

What does this change for Minnesota? We now have a completely open governor’s race in 2010. There will be no GOP incumbent in a state that has been trending less and less Republican-friendly over the last few election cycles. Obvious front runners for the GOP nomination are Minority Leader Marty Seifert, former Senator Norm Coleman (who may be too much damaged goods at this point in the never-ending contest saga), GOP activist Brian Sullivan, who lost to Pawlenty in 2000.

But it’s the not so obvious that could be interesting. Is Rep. Michele Bachmann interested in Governor, or has her national media campaign showed her hand in possibly running for senate against Sen. Amy Klobuchar? Is Minnesota Majority just an action group, or a way to get Mary Kiffmeyer back in the spotlight after losing Secretary of State to Mark Ritchie. And what ever happened to the Lieutenant Governor Molnau? Is she even around anymore?

This announcement will also lead to an onslaught of new DFL candidates. No one will want to let an open election go by without taking a swing. If Speaker Kelliher is interested, expect to hear from her in the next two weeks. She’ll want to be up and running before the 4th of July.