The Grassroots—Legalize Cannabis Party is a political third party in the U.S. state of Minnesota created by Oliver Steinberg in 2014 to oppose cannabis prohibition. G—LC Is a democratic socialist party with a background branching from the Grassroots Party established in 1986.
The 2006 Minnesota gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Tim Pawlenty was endorsed by the state Republican convention on June 2, 2006, while the state Democratic–Farmer–Labor convention endorsed Mike Hatch on June 10, 2006. The party primaries took place on September 12, 2006, with Hatch defeating DFL challengers Becky Lourey and Ole Savior and incumbent Pawlenty defeating Sue Jeffers. In the November 7 general election, Pawlenty received a plurality of the votes, defeating Hatch by a margin of 1%. As a result, this election was the closest race of the 2006 gubernatorial election cycle.
Paul Thissen is an American politician and jurist serving as an associate justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court. He previously served as the Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives and DFL Minority Leader. Thissen was the longest-serving leader of the Minnesota House Democrats since Martin Olav Sabo in the 1970s. A member of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL), he represented District 61B in south Minneapolis. First elected in 2002, Thissen was reelected every two years through 2016. On April 17, 2018, Governor Mark Dayton appointed Thissen to the Minnesota Supreme Court. He was sworn in on May 14, 2018. He is the first person to have served both as Minnesota House Speaker and on the Minnesota Supreme Court.
Al Doty is a Minnesota politician and a former member of the Minnesota House of Representatives who represented District 12B, which includes portions of Crow Wing and Morrison counties. A Democrat, he was first elected in 2006 when he defeated three-term Republican incumbent Greg Blaine. He was re-elected in 2008, but was unseated by Republican Mike LeMieur in the 2010 general election.
Andy J. Welti was a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. A Democrat, he was first elected in 2004, defeating four-term incumbent Republican Bill Kuisle. Just 24 years of age at the time, his victory over Kuisle was regarded as a significant political upset in the traditionally Republican area.
Denise R. Dittrich is a Minnesota politician and former member of the Minnesota House of Representatives from 2005 to 2012, representing District 47A, which included portions of the cities of Coon Rapids and Champlin in Anoka and Hennepin counties, which are part of the Twin Cities metropolitan area.
Patricia Torres Ray is a Colombian-American politician and former member of the Minnesota Senate. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), she represented District 63, which includes portions of southeastern Minneapolis and eastern Richfield in Hennepin County in the Twin Cities metropolitan area. She is the first Latina woman to serve in the Minnesota Senate. She ran for Congress in Minnesota's 5th district in 2018 to succeed Congressman Keith Ellison, but lost the primary to Ilhan Omar. In November 2021, she announced that she would not run for reelection in 2022.
Nora Bayly Slawik is a Minnesota politician, previously serving as Chairwoman of the Metropolitan Council, Maplewood Mayor and Minnesota State Representative. From 1997 to 1998 and 2001–2012, she represented District 57A, and from 2003 to 2012, she represented District 55B, which includes portions of Ramsey and Washington counties and the cities of Maplewood and Oakdale in the eastern part of the Twin Cities metropolitan area. As Mayor of Maplewood, first elected in 2013 and re-elected in 2018, she oversaw economic redevelopment, increased public safety, and expansion of Maplewood's public outdoor spaces. In 2018, she was appointed by Governor Tim Walz to serve as head of the Metropolitan Council, where she worked until stepping down in November 2019. She also has a history of community service before her time in office, including her development of Juniper as their Project Manager for the Metropolitan Area Agency on Aging from 2016 to 2017.
Kim Norton is an American politician serving as the mayor of Rochester, Minnesota. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously represented District 25B, which consists mostly of the northern portion of the city of Rochester, in the Minnesota House of Representatives. She was elected to become the first female mayor of Rochester in 2018 and reelected in 2022.
Mary Catherine Murphy is an American politician and former member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. She is a retired history and social studies teacher at Duluth Central High School in Duluth (1964–97). She is active in historical preservation and works as a grounds manager.
Erin Murphy is a Minnesota politician serving as Majority Leader of the Minnesota Senate since 2024. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), she represents District 64, which includes the Highland Park, Macalester-Groveland, Merriam Park, Summit Hill, and St. Anthony Park, neighborhoods of the city of Saint Paul in Ramsey County in the Twin Cities metropolitan area. She is a former Majority Leader of the Minnesota House of Representatives, executive director of the Minnesota Nurses Association, and is also a registered nurse.
Tara Kay Mack is a Minnesota politician and former member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. A member of the Republican Party of Minnesota, she represented District 57A, which included portions of the cities of Apple Valley and Lakeville in Dakota County, which is in the southeastern part of the Twin Cities metropolitan area.
Michael Edward Obermueller is a Minnesota lawyer and politician, a former member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. He represented District 38B in the southeastern Twin Cities metropolitan area from 2009 to 2011. In 2012 and 2014 Obermueller was the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party candidate for United States Congress in the second congressional district, challenging incumbent John Kline.
Ken Martin is an American political figure from Minnesota. He is currently Chairman of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party, President of the Association of State Democratic Committees, and a Vice Chair of the Democratic National Committee.
The 2018 Minnesota gubernatorial election took place on November 6, to elect the 41st Governor of Minnesota as incumbent Democratic governor Mark Dayton chose not to run for re-election for a third term. The Democratic nominee was congressman Tim Walz from Minnesota's 1st congressional district while the Republicans nominated Hennepin County commissioner Jeff Johnson. The Independence Party of Minnesota didn't field a candidate for the first time since 1994. Going into the election the polls showed Walz ahead and the race was characterized as lean or likely DFL.
Todd Lippert is an American politician and former pastor who served as a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives from 2019 to 2022. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), he represented District 20B which includes the city of Northfield and portions of Le Sueur and Rice County in south-central Minnesota.
Kelly Louise Morrison is an American doctor and politician serving in the Minnesota Senate since 2023. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party, Morrison represents District 45 in the western Twin Cities metropolitan area, which includes the cities of Minnetonka, Mound, Minnetrista, and Orono in Hennepin County. She served in the Minnesota House of Representatives from 2019 to 2023.
Minnesota Legal Marijuana Now is a political third party in the U.S. state of Minnesota established in 1998 to oppose drug prohibition.
Cedrick Rommel Frazier is an American attorney and politician serving as a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), he represents District 43A, which includes the cities of New Hope and Crystal in Hennepin County.
Omar Mahmood Fateh, is a Minnesota politician and a member of the Minnesota Senate. A member of the Minnesota Democratic Farmer-Labor Party (DFL), he represents District 62, which includes parts of south Minneapolis in Hennepin County. Fateh is the first Somali American and Muslim to serve in the Minnesota Senate.
