District 1B 2024 Election Guide

KAXE contacted every candidate twice 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.

As necessary, our news team added contextual information clearly marked with an "editor's note" and in italics, though responses have not been uniformly fact-checked. With our small team of three, we are unable to proactively fact check every statement made by candidates. But 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 only includes candidates in contested races. Visit our full list of who's running for office in Northern Minnesota to see who else is on the ballot.

Election Guide Homepage

Contributed

/

Mike Christopherson

Incumbent: No
Age on Election Day: 54
City/township of residence: Crookston

Party: DFL

Where are you currently employed, and what is your role?
Fisher Public School, Tier 1 licensed teacher

Please share any prior experience that you believe qualifies you for office.
I'm in my fourth year teaching at Fisher Public School, and my experience to date has opened my eyes to the challenges facing our students, teachers and families. We need to not just protect, but boost public education funding so we can offer learning experiences that prepare students with a variety of strengths and learning styles for successful adult lives.

Prior to entering the world of education, I was a journalist at the Crookston Times and led the newsroom there for more than 20 years. I was a watchdog of the powers-that-be and wrote thousands of stories and opinion pieces on countless important topics to my community, region and state. My experience taught me the importance of learning about all sides of an issue, and also taught me how to get information and work through sometimes difficult and complex issues and topics in order to best inform the public, and also myself. It also gave me a wide knowledge base of the issues and challenges facing our region.

Please describe the roles and responsibilities of the office you are running for.
The District 1B state representative would be the voice/advocate for all of Polk, Norman and Red Lake counties, and the northernmost portion of Clay County.

Why are you running for office?
Because I want to be a voice of reason in St. Paul. I told this to someone after I was recruited to run in District 1B, and he said "Well, everyone says they want to do that." And I thought, do they really, especially in today's ultra-partisan, often extreme political climate? How many politicians are reasonable or even strive to be reasonable? There is still such a thing as bipartisanship, and while I realize there are issues that Democrats and Republicans simply won't agree on - and that's simply a reality and we just need to deal with it - there are several issues important to District 1B and rural Minnesota in general that reasonable politicians should be able to rally behind.

What are your priorities, if elected? Please describe specific policy goals.
It's a package of priorities that all fall under the umbrella of rural vitality. We want individuals and families to live in our district's communities, so that means we must provide a variety of housing options, access to licensed childcare services, access to excellent rural healthcare, and consistent broadband internet service. All of these things are doable. Then we support public education by making the necessary changes to prepare a new age of learners for the future, and provide the funding to make those changes. Add to that supporting our farmers and agribusinesses that are the backbone of our region's economy, and it equals rural vitality.

Across the region, renters and owners are struggling to afford housing. If elected, what would you do to address the issues of availability and affordability for your constituents?
This is a massive issue. I attended a workforce housing summit in East Grand Forks this summer and it was amazing how complex this issue is and how the target is always shifting. Everyone's definition of affordable housing is different, which means we need a myriad of housing options, from affordable apartments, to multi-family dwellings like townhomes, to single-family homes for a variety of income demographics. The problem is that even building an "affordable" home, when adding in lot costs and everything else, still climbs well into six figures. That's why rehabbing existing homes must be part of the equation as well. The legislature in 2023 approved a historic $1.3 billion in housing-related legislation, but much of it was one-time funding. At the housing summit I attended, Minnesota Housing Commissioner Jennifer Ho said that level of funding would be needed for at least a decade to make real progress on providing Minnesota communities with the housing they desperately need.

From our audience: What effective policies will you support that will prepare your district now, next year and in the future to improve resiliency against climate change?
The status quo is not an option. I would support renewable energy initiatives focused on wind and solar power, both of which have become much more financially feasible in recent years. They are entirely affordable, and they provide consistent, reliable energy. We are lucky to live in a state home to beautiful outdoors, natural resources and natural wonders, and we must take the lead on protecting and preserving these things. We can be at the forefront when it comes to addressing climate change without being anti-business or anti-agriculture, because the negative effects of climate change are bad for business and bad for our farmers. But being leaders when it comes to renewable energy can be profitable for many.

High taxation is a concern for many Northern Minnesotans. Please share any specific opinions you hold related to taxation, and how you plan to ensure tax dollars are used efficiently and effectively.
Minnesota is seen as a high-tax state because it is a high-tax state. But Minnesota also scores among the highest and even the highest in various metrics that measure various aspects of "quality of life." In other words, it seems like we get a good bang for our buck. Does that mean all taxes make sense or that all tax increases should be rubber-stamped? Of course not. Property taxes in several District 1B communities have skyrocketed in recent years, and why is that? Are property taxpayers dealing with that increased tax burden getting the necessary bang for their buck? Maybe they are in some cases, but certainly not in all cases. I would be open to discussing our state's tax policy, but I also know tax revenue is what keeps our state open and operating.

How do you plan to improve transparency and trust in government?
I'll go back to an earlier answer: By being reasonable. Let's face it, when it comes to trust and transparency in government, the bar right now is about as low as it can get. We can only get better from here, I'd like to think, and that starts with being open and honest with constituents and keeping the lines of communication open. People need to be reminded that the government is capable of doing a lot of good for them, and being transparent and trustworthy is a big part of that.

Incumbent: No
Party: Republican

KAXE did not receive a response from this candidate.

Return to Election Guide

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.