KAXE contacted every candidate up to three times using contact information submitted to the Secretary of State's Office to invite them to participate in our Election Guide.
Candidate responses have not been edited and are published as submitted. Candidates were prohibited from using AI to generate responses.
As necessary, our news team added contextual information clearly marked with an "editor's note" and in italics. We will make every effort to make note of inaccuracies if they come to our attention.
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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 Hendrum, Perley and Borup. County Commissioner District 4 includes the city of Ada.
The current commissioner in District 3 is Steve Jacobson. The current commissioner in District 4 is Lee Ann Hall. Neither are 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: 62
Community: Rural Ada
Employment: Retired, watching local sports teams
Please share any prior experience and education that you believe qualifies you for office.
I meet the requirements, and will not be in for 20 years.
Why are you running?
The current board has spent a lot of money on pet projects and on engineering and doing it again because of poor ideas! They are in dire need of common sense!
Why should voters choose you to advance to the general election?
I will do my best to listen to the voters and fo do their will as much as possible! Our population is down to about 5000 people and dropping, we need to do something to get people to move here that are productive residents, it's going to be hard being this close to ND as the business climate is more favorable than what St. Paul allows.
Name a public leader you admire and explain why.
Ronald Reagan comes to mind as he was a political long shot when he started, with common sense and lower taxes he grew both CA and the national economy when he was the leader of each place. He also hated communism and believed people could do great things if the government got out of the way.
What are the three biggest issues your county is facing?
Spending, tax base, declining population
Which of those three issues is most important to you, and how would you address it if elected?
Spending, departments shouldn't have to spend their current years budget to get the same amount of money the following year they should be encouraged to save for unexpected expenses or save for bigger projects..
What would be your top spending priorities and savings priorities in the county budget?
Roads, our gravel roads get really wash boardy and if we need more education for operators let'sgetit forthem. let's gravel our roads in May and June instead of September and October when we are harvesting and the roads are very busy.
How should counties best use limited resources to root out potential fraud?
Use them all, Federal, state and local all need to work together to get the fraudsters and punish them to the fullest extent of the law. Then work to recover the money and return it to whom it belongs, we also need better screening of the recipients.
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.
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.
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.
