2006 Minnesota's 5th congressional district election

Minnesota's 5th congressional district

Candidates

Received nomination

• Keith Ellison, state representative^[1]

Defeated in primary

• Mike Erlandson, former Chairman of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party; former Chief of Staff to Martin Olav Sabo^[2]
• Andrew Vincent Favorite, businessman and former U.S. Navy reservist^[3]
• Gregg A. Iverson, perennial candidate and U.S. Army veteran^[3][4]
• Ember Reichgott Junge, former state senator^[5]
• Paul Ostrow, member of the Minneapolis City Council^[6]
• Patrick J. Wiles, former member of the United Auto Workers Local 879 executive board^[7]

Withdrew before primary

• Gail Dorfman, member of the Hennepin County Commission^[8] (endorsed Ellison)^[9]
• Anne Knapp, former Assistant Commissioner for the Department of Employment Security^[10] (endorsed Saavedra)^[11]
• Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer, Associate Professor of Justice and Peace Studies at the University of St. Thomas^[12] (endorsed Ellison)^[11]
• Jon Olson, President of the Minneapolis Parks Board^[13]
• Jorge Saavedra, attorney^[14] (endorsed Ellison)^[9]
• Gary Schiff, member of the Minneapolis City Council^[15]
• Erik Thompson, activist (Ran in the 7th congressional district)^[16]

Declined to run

• Mark Andrew, former chairman of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party^[17]
• Sharon Sayles Belton, former Mayor of Minneapolis^[18]
• Scott Benson, member of the Minneapolis City Council^[18]
• Satveer Chaudhary, state senator^[17]
• Scott Dibble, state senator^[17] (endorsed Dorfman)^[17]
• Betty Folliard, former state representative^[18]
• Lisa Goodman, member of the Minneapolis City Council^[17]
• Margaret Anderson Kelliher, state representative^[17] (endorsed Ellison)^[11]
• Peter McLaughlin, member of the Hennepin County Commission^[18]
• Mike Opat, member of the Hennepin County Commission^[17] (endorsed Dorfman, then Erlandson)^[17][3]
• R.T. Rybak, Mayor of Minneapolis^[18]
• Julie Sabo, former state senator^[17]

DFL endorsement

Before Sabo announced his retirement, he was already being challenged for the party endorsement by professor and anti-Iraq War activist Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer.^[12] Nelson-Pallmeyer's campaign was considered to have little to no chance of succeeding.^[12] When Sabo announced his retirement several candidates entered the race, seeking the DFL endorsement to replace him.^[19] Hennepin County commissioner Gail Dorfman announced her campaign for the seat on March 21, 2006, becoming the first woman to enter the campaign, and assumed the status of one of the frontrunners due to her strong fundraising record.^[20]

At the district convention in May, state representative Keith Ellison won the DFL endorsement after four ballots.^[21] Ellison winning the endorsement was considered a surprise, as election analysts had predicted a close race between him, Dorfman and former DFL chair Mike Erlandson, but instead Ellison came away with a convincing margin of victory, with Dorfman in second and Erlandson in fourth, behind Nelson-Pallmeyer.^[22][23] After being heckled by delegates for refusing to commit to endorsing the winner of the convention, Erlandson left the building and decided to run in the primary anyway. This action angered DFL chair Brian Melendez, who accused Erlandson of disloyalty.^[24]

Primary election

In the September primary, the retiring Sabo backed Erlandson. Ellison and Erlandson were joined by state senator Ember Reichgott Junge and Minneapolis City Councillor Paul Ostrow in the primary race, along with several minor candidates.

Junge was widely considered the most moderate candidate, and her campaign was largely focused around healthcare,^[25] while Ellison was focused on turning out traditionally overlooked voters, like Somali Americans and members of the LGBT community.^[26] However, Ellison's campaign suffered from numerous controversies, such as revelations that he had failed to pay back parking tickets, and that in the early 90s he had written articles praising the Nation of Islam.^[27] Erlandson attacked both Ellison and Junge, drawing attention to the controversies Ellison had been involved in, and criticising Junge for numerous votes she had made while a state senator and for being the Minnesota chair of Joe Lieberman's 2004 presidential campaign.^[28] Erlandson also emphasised his supposed ability to work with other elected Democrats in order to pass legislation.^[29] Ellison went on to win the September 12 primary with 41% of the vote.

Debates

Endorsements

Results

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Minnesota's 5th congressional district

Minnesota's 5th congressional district

Minnesota's 5th congressional district is a geographically small urban and suburban congressional district in Minnesota. It covers eastern Hennepin County, including the entire city of Minneapolis, along with parts of Anoka and Ramsey counties. Besides Minneapolis, major cities in the district include St. Louis Park, Richfield, Crystal, Robbinsdale, Golden Valley, New Hope, Fridley, and a small portion of Edina.

Keith Ellison

Keith Ellison

Keith Maurice Ellison is an American politician and lawyer serving as the 30th attorney general of Minnesota. A member of the Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), Ellison was the U.S. representative for Minnesota's 5th congressional district from 2007 to 2019. He also served as the deputy chair of the Democratic National Committee from 2017 to 2018 and a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives from 2003 to 2007. In Congress, Ellison built a reputation as a progressive leader.

Mike Erlandson

Mike Erlandson

Michael Erlandson is an American businessman and former politician who is currently a principal at Aurora Strategic Advisors, a public affairs company based in Minneapolis, MN.

Martin Olav Sabo

Martin Olav Sabo

Martin Olav Sabo was an American politician who served as United States Representative for Minnesota's fifth district, which includes Minneapolis; the district is one of eight congressional districts in Minnesota.

Ember Reichgott Junge

Ember Reichgott Junge

Ember Reichgott Junge is an attorney, radio personality, and former state senator from Minnesota, representing New Hope and surrounding communities. A Democrat, she was elected to the Senate at age 29 and served for 18 years. Junge served as majority whip from 1991 to 1994, and as assistant majority leader from 1995 to 2000. She authored the first charter school law in the United States.

Minneapolis City Council

Minneapolis City Council

The Minneapolis City Council is the lawmaking body of Minneapolis. It consists of 13 members, elected from separate wards to four-year terms, via a ranked-choice method. The council structure has been in place since the 1950s. In recent elections, council membership has been dominated by the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL). As of 2022, 12 members identified with the DFL, while one identified with Democratic Socialists of America. Until the 2021 Minneapolis City Council election, the city's government structure was considered a weak-mayor, strong-council system. However, a charter amendment was passed that gave the mayor more power and reduced the council to purely legislative duties.

United Auto Workers

United Auto Workers

The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, better known as the United Auto Workers (UAW), is an American labor union that represents workers in the United States and Canada. It was founded as part of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) in the 1930s and grew rapidly from 1936 to the 1950s. The union played a major role in the liberal wing of the Democratic Party under the leadership of Walter Reuther. It was known for gaining high wages and pensions for auto workers, but it was unable to unionize auto plants built by foreign-based car makers in the South after the 1970s, and it went into a steady decline in membership; reasons for this included increased automation, decreased use of labor, movements of manufacturing, and increased globalization.

Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer

Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer

Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer is an American academic. He sought the endorsement of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party as a candidate for U.S. Senate in 2008, but was defeated by Al Franken.

University of St. Thomas (Minnesota)

University of St. Thomas (Minnesota)

The University of St. Thomas is a private, Catholic university in St. Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota. Founded in 1885 as a Catholic seminary, it is named after Thomas Aquinas, the medieval Catholic theologian and philosopher who is the patron saint of students. As of fall 2021, St. Thomas enrolls nearly 9,347 students, making it Minnesota's largest private, nonprofit university.

Sharon Sayles Belton

Sharon Sayles Belton

Sharon Sayles Belton is an American community leader, politician and activist. She is Vice President of Community Relations and Government Affairs for Thomson Reuters Legal business.

Despite the heavy Democratic lean of the 5th district, Republicans were hopeful that with Sabo's retirement, their candidate would perform well.^[38] Before Sabo announced his retirement, two Republicans had already announced campaigns, Tim Anderson and James Turnham.^[39] However, by May the 3rd, both had dropped out, with Turnham citing "some unfortunate circumstances" as his reason for doing so,^[40] paving the way for business consultant Alan Fine to receive the party's nomination.^[41] Viewed as a moderate Republican, Fine was pro-choice, and his campaign was noted in its early days for its gentleness, with Fine himself often playing the piano at campaign events.^[38]

Candidates

• Alan Fine, business consultant and senior lecturer at the Carlson School of Management^[42]

Withdrawn

• Tim Anderson^[41]
• James Turnham^[39][41]

Results

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Abortion-rights movements

Abortion-rights movements

Abortion-rights movements, also self-styled as pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their pregnancy without fear of legal or social backlash. These movements are in direct opposition to anti-abortion movements.

Piano

Piano

The piano is a keyboard instrument with strings struck by wooden hammers coated with a softer material. It is played using its keyboard, which is a row of keys touched by the performer with the fingers and thumbs of both hands, causing the hammers to strike the strings. It was invented in Italy by Bartolomeo Cristofori around the year 1700.

Carlson School of Management

Carlson School of Management

The Curtis L. Carlson School of Management is the business school of the University of Minnesota, a public research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Carlson School offers undergraduate and graduate degrees as well as an executive education program. The Carlson School also offers dual degrees with the colleges and schools of public affairs, law, medicine, and public health.

Republican Party (United States)

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party, also referred to as the GOP, is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States. The GOP was founded in 1854 by anti-slavery activists who opposed the Kansas–Nebraska Act, which allowed for the potential expansion of chattel slavery into the western territories. It has been the main political rival of the Democratic Party since the mid-1850s. Like them, the Republican Party is a big tent of competing and often opposing ideologies. Presently, the Republican Party contains prominent conservative, centrist, populist, and right-libertarian factions.

Jay Pond

Candidates

• Keith Ellison (Democratic-Farmer-Labor), state representative^[23]
• Alan Fine (Republican), business consultant and senior lecturer at the Carlson School of Management^[42]
• Tammy Lee (Independence), businesswoman; former press secretary for U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan^[43]
• Jay Pond (Green), political scientist; Green nominee for CA-08 in 2002 and MN-05 in 2004^[44]
• Julian Santana (Socialist Workers), meat packer^[45] (write-in)^[46]
• Larry Leininger (White Working Man's), janitor and candidate for Mayor of Minneapolis in 2001^[47][48] (write-in)^[48]

Campaign

Following Ellison's victory in the DFL primary, Fine and Lee immediately started campaigning.^[49] Ellison promised to run a campaign on the "issues", and accused his opponents of attempting to steer the conversation towards his controversies because "on the issues they're in... big trouble".^[49] Ellison also attempted to de-emphasise his religion while campaigning.^[50] Fine's campaign largely focused on Ellison's past ties to the Nation of Islam and Louis Farrakhan, while Lee's campaign emphasised her fiscal centrism, declaring that Fine was too conservative to beat Ellison.^[49] In contrast to Fine and Lee, Pond declared that Ellison was insufficiently liberal, stating that he had not been fast enough to denounce the Iraq War.^[49] However, Pond largely failed to gain traction, which was attributed to Ellison's staunch progressivism drawing off left-wing support that Pond might otherwise have received.^[51]

In contrast to the genial tone his campaign had taken during the primaries, Fine's general election campaign took a staunchly combative turn.^[52] Special attention was drawn to Fine's comments after Ellison had won the primary, when he stated "I’m extremely concerned about Keith Ellison, Keith Hakim, Keith X Ellison, Keith Ellison Muhammad", referring to various pseudonyms Ellison had used when he was in college.^[53] These remarks were seen by some as racist, and one of Fine's brothers, Robert Fine, wrote a letter to Ellison denouncing his brother's comments.^[53] Fine's campaign was also wracked by allegations that he had abused his former wife in 1995, first revealed in a story by Star Tribune reporter Rochelle Olson.^[54] Fine strongly denied the allegations, claiming that Olson had ties to Ellison, and accused the Star Tribune of trying to "rig the election".^[55][56]

Lee capitalized on Ellison's controversies by securing endorsements from a coalition of Minnesota Democrats, including Kathleen Anderson, Sabo's long-time district director.^[57] Anderson labelled Ellison a "scofflaw" and stated that Lee was the only candidate "honorable" enough to carry on Sabo's legacy.^[58] Lee's campaign was largely focused around winning voters in the more moderate, suburban area of South Minneapolis.^[59] As the campaign continued, Lee was widely considered to be in second place, and several Republican officials attempted to convince Fine to drop out of the race in order to prevent the anti-Ellison vote from being split, but he refused.^[60]

Media coverage of the race outside of Minnesota largely focused around Ellison's status as the possible first Muslim member of the United States Congress.^[61] This focus was criticised both by Ellison's campaign and by Columbia Journalism Review, which found that the media was shoehorning Ellison's religion into articles where it was not relevant, and that the media was not giving anything other than a surface-level depiction of Islam, noting that only the St. Petersburg Times had stated whether Ellison was a Shia or Sunni in their coverage.^[61] In contrast, Columbia Journalism Review praised the Star Tribune's coverage of the race, finding that it was more substantial than the coverage in newspapers based outside of Minnesota.^[61] Fine strongly criticised the media's coverage of the race, stating that they had not covered Ellison's controversies enough and that they were not discussing the political positions of the candidates.^[52]

Sabo's support

During the primary run, departing Representative Sabo had endorsed and donated money to the campaign of his longtime chief of staff, Mike Erlandson.^[62] When Ellison won the primary and his campaign manager contacted him, Sabo said that he "wouldn't be supporting anyone in the race".^[62] Sabo donated funds to the general election campaigns of many Minnesota Democrats, including Coleen Rowley, Patty Wetterling, Tim Walz, and Amy Klobuchar, but none to Ellison. Several Democrats were disappointed with Sabo's refusal to endorse Ellison.^[63][57] Sabo allowed a picture of himself with Lee to be used in her campaign literature, and in response to this an anonymous individual set up a site designed to look like Lee's campaign website, wherein they accused Sabo of being motivated by racism in his refusal to endorse Ellison.^[64] This website was later revealed to have been created by activist Chris Stewart, who in 2006 was elected to the Minneapolis Board of Education.^[65]

Debates

Ellison, Fine and Lee debate at Beth El Synagogue on October 17, 2006

There were several debates held over the course of the race, along with numerous forums.^[56]

On October 17 two debates were held on the same night, one hosted by Air America and one hosted by the Beth El synagogue. All four major candidates on the ballot were invited to the Air America debate, though Fine did not attend.^[66] Pond was not invited to the Beth El debate, though he did attend it as a member of the audience, and upon seeing him Ellison and Lee escorted him onto the stage in order for him to participate. However, the debate officials refused to allow him to do so, and Pond returned to his seat.^[56] In an analysis of the Beth El debate, journalist and blogger David Zingler stated that Fine was the "least impressive" debater, finding that he was answering questions with "rambling dissertations that border on incoherent".^[56]

Shortly prior to the fourth debate, which was held by several student groups at the University of Minnesota, Julian Santana, who was running a write-in campaign for the seat as the nominee of the Socialist Workers Party, unexpectedly showed up, and was allowed to participate.^[46] Lee was widely regarded as the winner of the debate, though Pond was also regarded as having a strong performance.^[46]

Endorsements

Results

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Keith Ellison

Keith Ellison

Keith Maurice Ellison is an American politician and lawyer serving as the 30th attorney general of Minnesota. A member of the Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), Ellison was the U.S. representative for Minnesota's 5th congressional district from 2007 to 2019. He also served as the deputy chair of the Democratic National Committee from 2017 to 2018 and a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives from 2003 to 2007. In Congress, Ellison built a reputation as a progressive leader.

Republican Party of Minnesota

Republican Party of Minnesota

The Republican Party of Minnesota is the state affiliate of the Republican Party in Minnesota and the oldest active political party in the state, being founded in 1855. The party controls four of Minnesota's eight congressional House seats. The last Republican governor of the state was Tim Pawlenty, who served from 2003 to 2011. The party's headquarter is located in Edina, Minnesota and the current chairman is David Hann.

Carlson School of Management

Carlson School of Management

The Curtis L. Carlson School of Management is the business school of the University of Minnesota, a public research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Carlson School offers undergraduate and graduate degrees as well as an executive education program. The Carlson School also offers dual degrees with the colleges and schools of public affairs, law, medicine, and public health.

Independence Party of Minnesota

Independence Party of Minnesota

The Independence Party of Minnesota, formerly the Reform Party of Minnesota, is a political party in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It was the party of former Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura (1999–2003).

Byron Dorgan

Byron Dorgan

Byron Leslie Dorgan is an American author, businessman and former politician who served as a United States Representative (1981–1992) and United States Senator (1992–2011) from North Dakota. He is a member of the Democratic Party.

Green Party of Minnesota

Green Party of Minnesota

The Green Party of Minnesota is a green political party in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It is affiliated with the Green Party of the United States.

California's 8th congressional district

California's 8th congressional district

California's 8th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California. As of 2023, Democrat John Garamendi represents the district. Currently, the 8th district includes parts of the Bay Area counties of Contra Costa County and Solano County, including the cities of Vallejo, Fairfield, Richmond and parts of Martinez.

Socialist Workers Party (United States)

Socialist Workers Party (United States)

The Socialist Workers Party (SWP) is a communist party in the United States. Originally a group in the Communist Party USA that supported Leon Trotsky against Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, it places a priority on "solidarity work" to aid strikes and is strongly supportive of Cuba. The SWP publishes The Militant, a weekly newspaper that dates back to 1928. It also maintains Pathfinder Press.

Louis Farrakhan

Louis Farrakhan

Louis Farrakhan is an American black supremacist and anti-white religious leader who heads the Nation of Islam (NOI). Prior to joining the NOI, he was a calypso singer who used the stage name Calypso Gene. Earlier in his career, he served as the minister of mosques in Boston and Harlem and was appointed National Representative of the Nation of Islam by then NOI leader Elijah Muhammad. He adopted the name Louis X, before being named Louis Farrakhan.

Iraq War

Iraq War

The Iraq War was a protracted armed conflict in Iraq from 2003 to 2011 that began with the invasion of Iraq by the United States-led coalition that overthrew the Iraqi government of Saddam Hussein. The conflict continued for much of the next decade as an insurgency emerged to oppose the coalition forces and the post-invasion Iraqi government. US troops were officially withdrawn in 2011. The United States became re-involved in 2014 at the head of a new coalition, and the insurgency and many dimensions of the armed conflict are ongoing. The invasion occurred as part of the George W. Bush administration's war on terror following the September 11 attacks, despite no connection between Iraq and the attacks.

Progressivism in the United States

Progressivism in the United States

Progressivism in the United States is a political philosophy and reform movement in the United States advocating policies that are generally considered left-wing, left-wing populist, democratic socialist, libertarian socialist, social democratic, and environmentalist. In mainstream American politics, progressives generally advocate a universal healthcare system, wage equity and labor rights, economic justice, social justice, opposition to the military–industrial complex, an increase in corporate regulation, the abolition of capital punishment, and action on climate change.

Columbia Journalism Review

Columbia Journalism Review

The Columbia Journalism Review (CJR) is a biannual magazine for professional journalists that has been published by the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism since 1961. Its contents include news and media industry trends, analysis, professional ethics, and stories behind news.

Ellison's victory made him the first Muslim member of congress, as well as the first African-American congressman from Minnesota.^[75] Ellison's win was positively received by Muslim communities in the United States, who viewed it as an affirmation of their ability to advance politically.^[68] Incumbent congressman Sabo congratulated Ellison on his victory, stating "He has a big task in front of him and I wish him well". Sabo also cautioned Ellison against letting his high-profile status become a liability.^[76] After his victory, Ellison was denounced by users on the salafist message board Al-Hesbah, who deemed him "the first Jewish Muslim that goes to Congress" and "[a] one-way ticket to hell".^[77] Ellison announced that he would use a Quran when being sworn into his seat, a decision which led to the Quran oath controversy of the 110th United States Congress.^[78]

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Al-Hesbah

Al-Hesbah

Al-Hesbah is an Arabic-language jihadist message board and has been called "one of the most widely used jihadist Internet forums". On 17 October 2008, it was reported that four of Al Qaeda's five main websites were dismantled, and that Al Hesbah had become the only major Al Qaeda-linked website still in existence on the web.

Quran

Quran

The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters, which consist of verses. In addition to its religious significance, it is widely regarded as the finest work in Arabic literature, and has significantly influenced the Arabic language.

Quran oath controversy of the 110th United States Congress

Quran oath controversy of the 110th United States Congress

In mid-November 2006, it was reported that Keith Ellison, the first Muslim ever elected to the United States Congress, would take his oath of office with his hand on the Qurʻan. In reaction to the news, right-wing media pundit Dennis Prager criticized the decision in his November 28, 2006, column titled "America, not Keith Ellison, decides what book a Congressman takes his oath on," saying, "What Ellison and his Muslim and leftist supporters are saying is that it is of no consequence what America holds as its holiest book; all that matters is what any individual holds to be his holiest book."