U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith (top). 
Republican challengers Karin Housely and Jim Newberger (below).

Election 2018: Four candidates for two positions as U.S. Senator

Amy Klobuchar

U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (Democratic incumbent) is the first woman elected to represent the State of Minnesota in the United States Senate. Throughout her public service, Senator Klobuchar has always embraced the values she learned growing up in Minnesota. Her grandfather worked 1500 feet underground in the iron ore mines of Northern Minnesota. Her father, Jim, was a newspaperman, and her mother, Rose, was an elementary school teacher who continued teaching until she was 70. Senator Klobuchar has built a reputation of putting partisanship aside to help strengthen the economy and support families, workers and businesses. In 2016, an analysis by Medill News Service ranked her first among all 100 senators in sponsoring or cosponsoring bills that were enacted into law in the 114th Congress. Senator Klobuchar has built a reputation of putting partisanship aside to help strengthen the economy and support families, workers and businesses. She has always understood that her first duty is to represent the people of Minnesota. She acted quickly to obtain full funding to rebuild the I-35W bridge just thirteen months after it tragically collapsed into the Mississippi River. She worked across party lines to expand education and job opportunities for returning service members, fought to ensure that Minnesota National Guard members received the full benefits they earned, and helped turn Minnesota’s ground-breaking “Beyond the Yellow Ribbon” program into a national model. As a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, Senator Klobuchar was part of the important Farm Bill conference committee that reached an agreement between the Senate and the House on a long-term Farm Bill in 2014. Since arriving in the Senate, Senator Klobuchar has worked with Democrats and Republicans to get things done.

Tina Smith

Tina Smith (Democratic incumbent) serves as United States Senator for Minnesota. She’s a fierce advocate for Minnesotans and is focused on continuing the progressive legacy of the seat she holds. She was born on March 4, 1958 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and grew up in Santa Fe. In 1980, she graduated from Stanford University and in 1984, earned an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. Tina then moved to Minnesota to work at General Mills and raise a family with her husband, Archie. They’ve been married for more than 30 years and have two sons, Sam and Mason. Mason married his wife Julia in 2016, and Sam and his wife Emily wed in the fall of 2017. She’s served as Chief of Staff to both Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak and Governor Mark Dayton. In 2014, Tina was elected to serve as Minnesota’s 48th Lieutenant Governor. As Lieutenant Governor, she’s traveled to every corner of the state to talk with, learn from, and work on behalf of Minnesotans. She was appointed to the Senate by Governor Mark Dayton when the position came open. Tina is proud to have worked on issues like tax fairness. In Minnesota, she helped push to make sure the wealthiest two percent to pay their fair share which resulted in lower income taxes for everyone else in the state — and all while balancing the state’s budget. On health care, she worked to lower the number of Minnesotans without health insurance, and now the state’s uninsured rate is among the lowest in the country. But Senator Smith understands there’s still a lot we need to do to tackle health care costs, including prescription drug prices, and she’s committed to working to address this issue for Minnesota families. And Sen. Smith will continue working on many of the things she championed as Lt. Governor — including early education and rural broadband.

Karin Housley

Karin Housley is the Republican challenger to Senator Tina Smith. The daughter of two public school teachers, Karin was born and raised in South St. Paul. After graduating from South St. Paul High School in 1982, she went on to receive a degree in communications from the State University of New York at Buffalo. After college, Karin worked as a television news producer and eventually hosted her own radio show, authored an investment book, and started a successful real estate business. Karin married her high school sweetheart, Phil Housley, in 1985. For 20 years, Phil’s NHL Hall of Fame hockey career took the Housleys all over the United States and Canada – but Minnesota always remained their “forever home.” Karin and Phil make their home along the St. Croix River in St. Marys Point. They are the parents of four grown children and grandparents of two adorable grandsons. It was during this time they experienced the diversity in their schools, communities, and health care systems that gives Karin a unique perspective on many of the challenges that face our nation. In 2012, Karin was elected to serve the St. Croix River Valley in the Minnesota Senate. As a state senator, Karin is known for her ability to work across the aisle and deliver for her constituents, as well as her passionate advocacy for seniors and veterans. She pushed for the creation of the first-ever Senate Aging and Long-Term Care Committee, which she currently chairs, and is a leader in the fight to end elder abuse in Minnesota. Karin also serves as vice chair of the Commerce and Consumer Protection Committee and sits on the Veterans and Military Affairs and the Jobs and Economic Growth committees. One of her priorities is mining she said, “That is one of Minnesota’s most important industries. When it comes to copper-nickel mining, I believe we can both protect our environment and mine responsibly, maintaining our clean water while opening the door to a major economic boost.”

Jim Newberger

Jim Newburger (Republican challenger to US Senator Amy Klobuchar) grew up as the youngest of six kids and graduated from Hopkins Lindbergh High School and St. Cloud State University. He has been a paramedic for 30 years serving a Level I Trauma hospital in the Twin Cities. Michele and Jim have been married for 27 years and have been living in Becker. They have three grown daughters. “One night, I was on a call on Hwy 610 for an accident-injury. I got out of the rig to evaluate the patient and I fell on the ice. That’s the last thing I remember from that call. While I was healing from a shattered arm, I became involved in the grassroots. Those were the first steps I took to serve as State Representative.” He has been a state representative for six years representing portions of Sherburne, Morrison, Benton and Wright counties. He was the legislative leader on replacing the Sherco Power Plant Units one and two with a new natural gas plant. He was also co-author of bills to allow for the Enbridge expansion and to eliminate the Sulfate standard which would enable the expansion of mining in Northeastern Minnesota. Jim led legislative efforts which: •Stopped DNR and MPCA overreach into farming •Stopped MNDOT’s oppressive practices with private contractors •Provided assistance for constituents with their MNSURE/Obamacare problems •Helped home based Cottage Food businesses expand •To provide PTSD care for Police, Fire, EMS and First Responders and stopped the Dept. of Commerce’s oppressive policies against veterans with PTSD. He has worked hard to protect our constitutional rights, and our freedom from government intrusion and higher and higher taxes and fees And he’s authored the Emergency Powers Law which prevents government from confiscating legally owned firearms during emergencies. Newberger was the chief author of Refugee Resettlement cost recovery bill.

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