Leading Off
● MN-Gov: On Monday, Democratic Rep. Tim Walz announced that he would enter the race to succeed retiring Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton in 2018. Walz has represented southern Minnesota's 1st District since ousting a GOP incumbent in the 2006 wave, and he leaves behind a House seat that lurched so hard to the right in 2016 that Walz nearly lost to a challenger who was on no one's radar. The ancestrally Republican 1st had backed Barack Obama by 50-48 in 2012, but Donald Trump won the overwhelmingly white and heavily rural seat by a punishing 53-38 margin, meaning Democrats could have a strenuous time holding it without Walz.
Still, Walz might figure he has a better chance of getting elected governor in a state that supported Hillary Clinton 46-45 than he does of holding down such a hostile House district. His record of winning in tough turf could also help him considerably in the general election if he secures the Democratic nomination.
Minnesota Democrats typically hold nominating conventions to endorse a candidate, with those who don’t earn the endorsement often dropping out ahead of the primary. Walz has reportedly said he will attempt to win the state party's endorsement, but he isn't yet promising to quit the race if he doesn't get it. There is nothing preventing those who don't win at the convention from proceeding on to the regular primary election, which is exactly what Dayton did when he won the 2010 nomination over the party-endorsed candidate.
Many of the other announced or prospective Democratic gubernatorial candidates hail from the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area, which could leave Walz to consolidate the support of outstate Democratic voters. All it takes is a plurality to win a primary, which could give him a crucial leg up if several metro-area candidates split the vote there. However, a convention endorsement is still a valuable asset that Walz might feel he can't afford to lose, especially if the process whittles down the number of primary opponents from the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area.
from Daily Kos http://ift.tt/2nHQUeH
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