Offices and directors were selected at the Otter Tail County DFL Convention on March 15. The names are posted on the Contact page.

Twenty-two resolutions were approved at the Convention which have been sent to the State DFL for consideration at the State DFL Convention. The resolutions are posed on the Resolutions page.

June 6-9 DFL State Convention
Endorses Franken

Al Franken was endorsed by acclamation at the DFL State Convention in Rochester.

May 10 DFL Senate District 10 Convention
Endorses Stumbo and Nieminen

The rescheduled Senate District 10 Convention was held in Henning on Saturday, May 10. The convention began with the election of Bert Nelson of New York Mills as the convention chair. New officers and directors were elected with Tom Schulz from Sebeka as chair and Kris Warhol as associate chair.

The convention delegates endorsed Greg Stumbo and Tim Nieminen for the 10A and 10B House seats respectively. As the only 10A candidate, Stumbo was endorsed unanimously. Nieminen was challenged by Janine Hudson from Wadena who did exceedingly well as a first time candidate. Nieminen won endorsement on the first ballot with 60 percent of the vote.

Greg Stumbo and his wife Jenny have four children and live in Fergus Falls. He is a member of the city council and owns and operates his coffee business, Stumbeano's Coffee, which is known at least as far away as Kentucky.

Before the vote Stumbo commented, “My experiences of being a parent, a business owner and a city council member for Fergus Falls have prepared me well for the challenges I'll face if elected to serve. I've done a good deal of listening and have gained perspective for the common ground that will make me a successful leader for the communities I'll serve.”

Born in Detroit Lakes, Tim Nieminen moved with his family to Warroad when he was 13 and graduated from high school there. Shortly after graduation he moved to Wadena and attended Wadena Tech School where he received degrees in Electronics Technology and Computer Systems Electronics. He now runs the computer sales and repair business, The Computer Guy, in Wadena.

This is Nieminen's second time running. In the 2006 election he gathered 40 percent of the vote as a first time candidate. This time around he intends the outcome to be reversed. He said, “I ran two years ago with a strong showing against an incumbent. I learned a lot. I listened a lot. And now it is time for a Democrat to represent district 10B in the Minnesota House. We have families forced from their homes, moms and dads without jobs, children hungry and lacking health care, and cuts in basic education – the building block for a better future. Enough is enough.”

Senator Dan Skogen participated as a delegate and commented about progress at the Capitol. “We passed a comprehensive transportation package ... the result is 28 DOT projects have been accelerated creating thousand of jobs. We passed a bonding package that will create more jobs. ... I really think we can work our way out of this recession, by strategically investing in roads, bridges and university infrastructure ... putting people to work preserving and taking care of what is important to Minnesotans."

Senator Skogen concluded, “To our new House candidates: I would encourage them to get organized, stay focused work hard, and then work a little harder. We need six new DFL House members, so for the next two years our Governor will be forced to listen to reasonable requests that will move this state forward. Good politics takes courage. This is an opportunity to win both House seats. We need the candidates to do everything needed to win. We need the Senate District 10 DFLers to do what they can to support these candidates.”

March 15 OTC County Convention Notes

The Otter Tail County Democratic Farmer Labor (DFL) convention was held at the Royal Broberg Auditorium at Battle Lake on Saturday, March 15. One big addition to the convention this year was the performance by the local musician Tony Miltich from Fergus Falls who entertained us before the convention and during the lunch break.

The convention was called to order at 10 a.m. with the Pledge of Allegiance and welcome.

There were nearly double the number of delegates at the convention this year compared to the 2006 convention — a sure sign that after seven long years, the people in Otter Tail County are ready for change. Although there are 397 seats in the auditorium, it didn't look like there were too many empty seats after the delegates, alternates, guests and visitors were seated.

This year's county convention featured several speakers, including: Minnesota State Senator Dan Skogen (District 10); representatives from U.S. Senate candidate campaigns for Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer and Al Franken; Minnesota House District 10A candidate Greg Stumbo; and Minnesota House District 10B candidates Tim Niminen and Janine Hudson.

Sen. Skogen spoke about having the courage to do the right thing. “A public servant needs courage, as a legislature we showed courage on the transportation bill. We will need to have courage to deal with health care reform, property taxes, nursing home payments and education.” He also talked about current farm issues in Minnesota.

Nelson-Pallmeyer's message, delivered by Nora French and Dan Skogen, was that Jack had advised Paul Wellstone that we were being lied to about Iraq and to vote against going to war. Jack's position is that withdrawing our troops is the essential first step to reconciliation within Iraq.

Franken was represented by former Rep. Gene Wenstrom of Elbow Lake and Al's daughter Thomasin. Al has stated, “The Bush administration led us into war under false pretenses and dug us a deep hole in Iraq. We should put more thought into how we get out than we did into how we got in and we should start now. The best way to convince the Iraqi government that we're leaving is to actually start leaving.”

Greg Stumbo, candidate for the 10A house seat, asked the delegates for their support as he entered the political process. Greg and his family live in Fergus Falls where he is a member of the city council. Among his concerns is restoration of local government aid to cities and towns and sufficient and stable financing for schools.

Tim Niminen announced his intentions of seeking the 10B house seat again. Tim has been the “Computer Guy” in Wadena for several years.

Janine Hudson is entering the race for the 10B house seat for the first time. Janine has worked in social services for many years in Wadena County.

Along with the regular business of electing officers, board directors and delegates to the State Convention, the county delegates voted on more than 60 resolutions, several of which were debated and voted up or down by a voice vote or show of hands. Twenty-two resolutions will be sent to the State DFL to be presented to the state convention.

Many delegates and guests commented on the great site for the convention, the organization, and the smooth manner in which the convention chair, Randy Clarksean, conducted the convention. The convention was adjourned at 3:45 p.m.

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