Bakk again

OK, one more post on Tom Bakk’s exploration of a gubernatorial run. Then I’m done with this 2010 nonsense for a while.

Folks have picked up that I’m skeptical about Bakk’s chances. I’ve been down the old timey Iron Range statewide whistle stop tour before. It’s like trying to occupy Russia in January. There is a fundamental barrier facing any Iron Range statewide run. And this comes from a fifth generation Iron Ranger who lives on the Range and loves the Range. People in the suburbs think we’re crazy. Adorably crazy perhaps, but still crazy.

Our three recent statewide candidates have included Rudy Perpich (brilliant, but eccentric, known as Gov. Goofy nationally), Doug Johnson for governor in ’98 (Johnson ran ads that spoofed Budweiser’s frog campaign: “Doug” …”Gov”); and Jerry Janezich for Senate in 2000 (Jerry’s not very eccentric, but does own and operate a downtown Range bar). Rudy was the most successful, but he came to statewide prominence as Lt. Governor under Wendell Anderson during the Minnesota Miracle years. Johnson ran unendorsed in the primary and got killed. Janezich heroically won the endorsement but got killed in the primary by Dayton’s money.

So if Bakk is going to win he’s got to A) win the endorsement, B) assemble a coalition that includes the suburbs — where he will be perceived initially as being another crazy Ranger (he’s built like a shovel operator at any of our local mines), and C) do what all the other Range candidates always struggled to do, raise gobs and gobs of money; enough to outgun Dayton (who’s back, by the way). Now, Bakk might (big time might) be able to do that. Bakk is one of the few state senators who is endorsed by both the Chamber of Commerce and virtually all of labor. But raising money from the chamber/labor overlap means digging in some dark corners of the fundraising world. We’re talking lots of lobbyists, PACs and pinstripe suit types. That doesn’t scream DFL endorsement to me. The Kelly Doran “business-friendly” end-around didn’t work in 2006 and probably won’t here, either.

So yes, I’m skeptical. Totally uncommitted, but curious how Bakk and the others will perform after (REPEAT, AFTER!) the 2008 election is over. Keep in mind, Iron Range political legend Tom Rukavina is still considering a run and would easily torpedo Bakk’s local support if he does.

I do know this: far MORE likely than an Iron Range governor in 2010 is an Iron Range Lt. Governor. Rudy Perpich forged that path in 1974 and it’s the only proven way for Iron Rangers to climb the ladder in the modern era. After all, we don’t have you big city folks’ major media penetration or foldin’ money.

Comments

  1. While it could theoretically happen, I think the chances of a governor from the Iron Range are a lot less than when Perpich ran. I was in my early teens when Arne Carlson beat Perpich, but the demographics of the state have changed significantly since then. The Twin Cities are a lot bigger now than they were then and the Iron Range has shrunk. It could happen, but it would take a lot of things happening in the same year for it to work.

  2. Anonymous says

    The entire state is now victim to the demographic shift toward an urban population. Those of us outside the metro area are getting screwed. Sadly, our elections are probably going to continue to reflect that shift. We need to focus more energy on putting capable people in the place we have a prayer of making a difference – the state legislature – and building coalitions there with other parts of the state. If a statesman from the Range should rise there, PERHAPS we would find a way to have another Range governor.

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