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KAXE's Primary Election Guide only includes races where enough candidates filed to trigger a primary. Visit our full list of who's running for office in Northern Minnesota to see who else will be on the ballot in November.
About this race
The county board is responsible for governing its county, including by approving the budget. Generally, counties are responsible for the following: property tax assessment, tax administration, elections, record keeping, transportation, planning and zoning, solid waste management, environment, parks and water management, law enforcement, courts and health and human services.
County Commissioner District 3 includes the cities of Hackensack, Backus and Chickamaw Beach. County Commissioner District 4 includes the cities of Walker, Longville and Remer.
There is no incumbent running in District 3, as Commissioner Rusty Lilyquist died in February. In District 4, the current commissioner is Scott D. Bruns, who is running for reelection.
The top two candidates in the Aug. 11 primary will advance to the November ballot.
Click the tabs below to learn more about the candidates
Incumbent: No
Age on Election Day: 68
Community: Backus
Employment: retired
Please share any prior experience and education that you believe qualifies you for office.
For nearly 30 years I have served as Executive Director of the Pine River - Backus Family Center, helping grow the organization from an early community initiative into a trusted local resource for children, families, seniors and residents facing difficult situations. I later served as the Executive Director of the Northland Family Center, expanding my work across the region. Throughout my career, I have managed nonprofit budgets, secured grants and donor support, built partnerships with schools and county agencies, worked directly with families in crisis, and helped create programs that respond to real local needs. I have served on the Pine Rive-Backus School Board, the Cass County Children's Initiative Board and county level committees connected to family services. I volunteered for nine years with the Cass County Sheriff's Mounted Posse, reflecting my commitment to public safety, rural volunteerism, and service beyond the workplace.
Why are you running?
I am running for Cass Count Commissioner District 3 to bring practical leadership, fiscal responsibility, transparency, and community-focused decision-making to county government.
Why should voters choose you to advance to the general election?
My connection to Cass County is shaped by my love for the outdoors and the everyday values of our rural community. These experiences are part of my story, and they've shaped how I will listen to and serve the communities of District 3. Cass County communities face real challenges, including access to services, childcare, housing, transportation realities, and long term community wellness. I believe solutions should be practical, local and built through collaboration.
Name a public leader you admire and explain why.
Good leaders inspire, empower, and guide others to achieve a shared vision. There are many leaders which I have worked and learned from over the years often it is not one leader it is a community of leaders that make the difference and create change.
What are the three biggest issues your county is facing?
Listening to Cass County staff present at a planning session in early June these areas were concerns; Mental Health and Substance use disorders, Heath and Human Services operational pressures (money for mandated services) and Cyber security including IT infrastructure and costs.
Which of those three issues is most important to you, and how would you address it if elected?
I feel that all three are important and interconnected. I would address them through listening to what is needed, addressing the budget to ensure that resources and staff are in place to meet the needs.
What would be your top spending priorities and savings priorities in the county budget?
Top spending priorities would be assessed through the process the County has created to review department budgets with a citizen budget committee, receive and review the committees recommendation and discuss with the team of commissioners to come up with a plan.
How should counties best use limited resources to root out potential fraud?
Counties should follow the policies and processes they have in place to prevent fraud. Those policies include segregation of duties, staff training and transparent whistleblower reporting.
KAXE did not receive a response from this candidate.
Website: lundgrenforcasscounty.com
KAXE did not receive a response from this candidate.
KAXE did not receive a response from this candidate.
KAXE did not receive a response from this candidate.
Incumbent: No
Age on Election Day: 37
Community: Remer
Employment: Self employed
Please share any prior experience and education that you believe qualifies you for office.
I have worked in private business, as a Cass County Corrections officer, for the
City of Remer as the maintenance supervisor, ran my own small business and served on the Northland Community School board since 2020 so I have seen how local government affects most everyone in Cass County and think it is important to be well rounded in this position to make our county a better place to live, work and raise a family.
Why are you running?
I am running to give Cass County a well rounded outlook on issues affecting members of the community in their daily lives, and I want to use my voice to speak for all of the people in Cass County that are not in a situation to run and have a voice on issues at the county level.
Why should voters choose you to advance to the general election?
I think voters should choose me as the district four county commissioner because I bring real world experience and understand how local government should work for the people of Cass County.
Name a public leader you admire and explain why.
There are to many to name but a good public leader should listen to the community and always try to do what's right even if it's not the most popular decision at the time.
What are the three biggest issues your county is facing?
Permitting, Budgeting and Transparency
Which of those three issues is most important to you, and how would you address it if elected?
Transparency, If elected I would make sure there are conversations happening at meetings and with people concerned with decisions being made by the county board. I think a lot of people get frustrated mainly from being left in the dark and lack of explanations.
What would be your top spending priorities and savings priorities in the county budget?
I think public safety is the number one spending priority if that's emergency services or road maintenance or anything else that the county has control over that can make everyones day safer. And I'm sure there are plenty of ways in the budget to be smart with the tax payers money and make sure we are not over spending when we don't need to.
How should counties best use limited resources to root out potential fraud?
I think the county should focus on preventing fraud from the start by auditing each department regularly and holding people accountable if any fraud is found and by not allowing any one person to have total control over any resources.
KAXE did not receive a response from this candidate.
Still have questions for the candidates? Contact information for all those who've filed to run for office can be found at candidates.sos.state.mn.us.
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Contributed/Lorie ShaullMonths before the midterms, the Trump administration dismantled a bipartisan federal commission that serves local offices that oversee voting. -
Lorie Shaull/Special to KAXEThe library matched the anonymous matching donation for $30,000 it received in June 2026. A larger fundraising goal is aimed at increasing public hours in 2027. -
Contributed/University of Wisconsin-Madison Space Science and Engineering CenterDue to smoke from Boundary Waters wildfires, the MPCA issued air quality alerts for large parts of Minnesota. The alert lasts until at least Friday, July 16, 2026. -
During the Phenology Report for the week of July 14, 2026 Staff Phenologist John Latimer remarks on blooming basswoods, hawks hunting in harvested fields, and more.
