KAXE contacted each candidate at least twice to invite them to participate in our Election Guide, using contact information submitted to the Secretary of State's Office.
Candidate responses have not been edited and are published exactly as submitted, including typos and formatting.
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.
Please contact our news team at news@kaxe.org with questions or comments or to report any errors.
KAXE's Election Guide includes contested races in communities with at least 100 people. 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 these races
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 6 includes the cities of Eveleth, Gilbert, Leonidas, Mountain Iron and Virginia. The current commissioner is Keith Nelson, who is not running for reelection.
Commissioner District 1 includes a portion of Duluth. The current commissioner is Annie Harala, who is running for reelection. (NOTE: KAXE did not include this commissioner district in our Election Guide, because we generally do not cover the city of Duluth.)
The winner of these elections will begin their four-year terms in January.
Click the tabs below to learn more about the candidates
Age on Election Day: 50
Community: Gilbert
Employment: Hibbing Taconite - Union President
Please share any prior experience and education that you believe qualifies you for office.
I believe my last 12 years (3yrs VP and 9yrs President) being immersed in the United Steelworkers Union qualifies me. Working along side local, state and federal elected officials and agencies over that time has helped me get a better understanding of how it all works.
Why are you running?
I’m running because I believe our district needs a strong, common sense leader and a person who will listen to the residents of the district. I also believe we need someone who will help support working families and will make responsible decisions on how tax dollars are used. I want to work with local, state and federal agencies to try and get good paying, livable wage jobs in our communities so we can get people to stay and work and raise families here.
Why should voters elect you?
Voters should elect me because I will fight to strengthen the communities and fight to keep the services that are provided and make some of those better. I was born and raised in the district and want people to be able to enjoy it for generations to come. I will be focused on transparency, accountability and putting residents first.
Name a public leader you admire and explain why.
Tom Rukavina because he was a fighter for the region and he had a way of getting things done while working with people who didn’t have the same beliefs as he did because it was the right thing to do.
What are the three biggest issues your county is facing?
Cost of living, livable wage jobs and unfunded state and federal mandates
Which of those three issues is most important to you, and how would you address it if elected?
Livable wage jobs. I will work with all levels of government and agencies to help any way I can to try and get companies to come to the area so we can have good paying jobs so people are able to stay in the area and can raise families here.
What would be your top spending priorities and savings priorities in the county budget?
Public safety, public works, roads and bridges are some spending priorities. Selling lands to help build tax base and trying to work with labor to address rising healthcare costs would help with some savings.
Rising property taxes are a concern for many Northern Minnesotans. How would you aim to minimize levy increases?
Fight to get all available outside funds we can and then prioritize essential services while making sure we are running as efficiently as possible in all departments. Make sure capital projects are planned way ahead of time to avoid spikes in a levy.Transparency is crucial so we can justify any levy that is proposed.
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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