vs.
Bush Republican, Erik Paulsen
vs.
Independent David Dillion
The Startribune has a rather large story covering the race today. The racial undertones are making the race even hotter.
Meanwhile, a Paulsen surrogate, state Sen. Geoff Michel, R-Minn., took the podium at a news conference last week to question Madia's ties to the district because, among other things, he has not raised a family there or paid a mortgage or gone to a PTA meeting.
Madia, who graduated from high school in the district, is a bachelor and rents an apartment in Plymouth. He listed his parents' Plymouth address while he was in the Marines and deployed to Iraq.
State GOP chairman Ron Carey also recently urged voters to examine "the demographic standpoint" of the candidates to determine which one to vote for.
DFL Party chair Brian Melendez said Carey and Michel's use of "loaded code words" injected race into the campaign. Madia's parents emigrated from India, and Paulsen is white.
Carey denied there were any racial or ethnic undertones to his comments. "I bristle at the insinuation that that was what was trying to be said," he said. "We're simply talking résumé. Period."
Oh yeah, the often utilized demographics portion of a resume.
Video from the Carey and Michel press conferences.
It's easy to see the political courage in the race. Madia has diavowed independent ads that have attacked his opponent. Paulsen sends his surrogates to attack Madia on race, and remains silent.
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