SoS special election page. Many, but not yet Carnahan.
This has to be some kind of a joke. Vegas should be taking bets on who she dredges up as "Campaign Manager."
Name recognition? Yes. Cred? You decide.
Strib wrote:
While Carnahan is a well known name in the Minnesota GOP ranks, her candidacy comes with significant baggage. Calls for her resignation as the state party's leader started last August after a major GOP donor she was close with, Anton "Tony" Lazzaro, was arrested on federal sex-trafficking charges.
In the days that followed, allegations emerged about a toxic work environment and unchecked sexual harassment under her watch. Carnahan resigned as party chair under pressure that same month and was set to receive around $38,000 in severance.
Do you suppose that is how Carnahan's Linked In page reads?
Ending its post, Strib wrote:
Voters have two chances to send someone to Washington, first in an August special to fill the remainder of Hagedorn's term and then again in November's general election for a full term under the new redistricting lines. A primary for the special election is set for May 24.
Other candidates on the Republican side include former United States Department of Agriculture official Brad Finstad, state Reps. Jeremy Munson and Nels Pierson and attorney Matt Benda.
Democrats who've filed to run for the special election include Richard Painter, an ethics lawyer who worked for the George W. Bush administration, former political consultant Sarah Brakebill-Hacke and former Hormel Foods CEO Jeff Ettinger.
Is there a massive outcry, "Jennifer - Do It!"? Seemingly not.
This news awaits seeing, for certain, that a timely filing with the SoS follows the announcement.
Campaign Treasurer?
A possibility - Carnahan defers on the special election, aiming instead at the November full term election rather than jumping into a contest to finish the Hagedorn term. That is ambiguous, given Strib's opening paragraphs -
The former chair of Minnesota's Republican Party is running for Congress just months after fellow GOP leaders helped force her from power.
Jennifer Carnahan announced Monday she is running in the First District Congressional race in hopes of winning the southern Minnesota seat her late husband Jim Hagedorn held.
The report does not state whether she'd seek the special election nod, or defer and go for the seat in November. Do we care?
UPDATE: Opening PiPress' homepage, searching = Carnahan
Nothing.
Minn Post's Glean, here, with a pic of the widow, references Politico as its source.
"House GOP winces as Hagedorn's scandal-plagued widow eyes his empty seat"
Text from Politico:
The late GOP Rep. Jim Hagedorn’s widow is laying the groundwork to try to seek his old seat in Minnesota, according to multiple well-placed Republicans who are already raising alarms about her polarizing background.
Republicans are preparing for Jennifer Carnahan to launch her campaign for Minnesota’s 1st District as early as Friday, entering a special election already shaping up to be crowded and competitive with a vow to carry on her late husband’s legacy. Carnahan would bring more than ties to Hagedorn, who died last month after battling kidney cancer since 2019 — she’s a former state GOP chair.
But Carnahan resigned the Minnesota Republican chair position last summer amid a scandal that began when a donor got charged with multiple counts of sex trafficking. She’s starting her Hill outreach early: House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy confirmed to POLITICO that he and Carnahan spoke by phone this week, a day after Hagedorn’s Tuesday memorial service in Virginia.
Whether that effort gets her past the GOP’s privately held anxiety over her checkered record is another matter.
“I think she has a lot of unresolved political baggage that will put the congressional district in play for the Democrats,” said Michael Brodkorb, a former deputy chair of the Minnesota GOP who also spoke out after her resignation. He added that a Carnahan bid “will also bring an unnecessary level of drama and resurface some unresolved issues” that the party would otherwise like to leave in the past.
When asked whether Carnahan expressed her intent to run for her late husband’s seat during their call, McCarthy didn’t answer yes or no. She also spoke Wednesday to Pennsylvania Rep. GT Thompson, the top Republican on the House Agriculture Committee; Hagedorn previously served on the panel, an assignment critical to his district. Thompson said Carnahan did not mention plans to run for the seat. He’s already endorsed Brad Finstad, another Republican in the race with an agriculture-heavy resume.
Asked for comment on her potential plans to run, as well as closed-door GOP anxiety over her bid, Carnahan also didn’t confirm a bid — but did push back at her critics.
“Strong leaders frequently end up with enemies. You could pick almost any Member out of the Congressional register and come up with similar attacks,” Carnahan wrote to POLITICO. “I suggest you look at the history of Michael Brodkorb and his credibility as an accuser. I made and maintain many great friendship[s] from my service in the Republican Party of Minnesota.”
She did not respond when pressed for specifics about her claims of Brodkorb’s past. Carnahan also pointed to laudatory remarks that South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem offered for a Minnesota GOP dinner in March 2021.
“What I love about Jennifer is, she’s not a poser. She’s not a fake,” Noem said in a video recorded for the event. “She is leading your state with grace, dignity and a lot of grit in her belly.”
Asked for comment on her previous remarks about Carnahan, made before the Lazzaro scandal, Noem said in a statement: “I’ll let the people of her district decide if she is qualified to serve them.” Noem is not expected to endorse any candidates in the race.
"Grit in her belly." There are meds you can take for that.
With grace and dignity.
Making the MN GOP Great Again? A developing story.
FURTHER: FOX clarifies, quoting in pieces what appears to be a complete Carnahan press release. Below, as a single item, per FOX
"I am proud to announce my candidacy to represent Minnesota’s First Congressional District. Though my heart is still heavy after Jim’s passing, the encouragement I have received from throughout southern Minnesota has inspired me to carry on his legacy by running to complete the remainder of his term," Carnahan wrote in a news release first provided to Fox News Digital.
"In the final weeks before his passing, Jim told me to keep forging ahead, to keep reaching my dreams, and to win this seat," Carnahan added. "Jim was my best friend and the love of my life, and it is his blessing that strengthens me for the challenges ahead. I am committed to continuing my husband’s legacy of fighting to secure the border, defending conservative values, safeguarding the integrity of our elections, and serving the people of Minnesota’s First Congressional District."
"During the Trump administration we saw economic and regulatory reform, US energy independence, trade deals like the USMCA - initiatives that created jobs and provided opportunity to people across the country - including right here in southern Minnesota," Carnahan added. "Jim and I saw the rest of President Trump’s conservative vision stonewalled by the left and some in the Washington establishment. While DC insiders are lining their pockets; hard working Minnesotans are languishing beneath record inflation, a lawless border and higher input costs for agriculture, impacting all of America."
"I am running to disrupt the status quo and get Washington working for the people again," she said.
"Like President Trump, I am a businesswoman and fighter," Carnahan declared. "Here in Minnesota, I disrupted the status quo and brought the Republican Party back to relevance. Now, I ask for the support of southern Minnesota to do the same in Washington."
". . . to complete the remainder of his term . . ." FOX wrote, quoting the lengthy press release. Meaning a final filing days candidacy submission to the SoS.
The dead man said it should be me, that theme just seems jangley and inappropriate. Running out of personal ambition, okay. Riding coat tails of Trump and the dead Rep - too much, or not?
One has to guess whether the thirty-eight grand's been spent, or whether all or a major part will finance the candidacy. It and an inheritance.
FURTHER: As part of things, Salon, Aug 27, 2021. Times during Carnahan's being pressured to step down were tense and accusations existed. Four prominent Republican activists did write a joint letter.
FURTHER: There is much still online about the buildup and circumstances of the Carnahan resignation; e.g., this. After all that happened then, Carnahan has chosen to seek the CD1 seat, now, in what is a short time distance from the turmoil. The paycheck is good, the approbation and attention a member of Congress gains is an ego boost. Carnahan's press release mentions a will and desire to serve the district as her motivation, along with a will to continue things she says Jim Hagedorn priortized. The guess here is her candidacy will trail other GOP people seeking the seat. All for now.