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.
Spencer Igo
Editor's note: While we did receive Spencer Igo's photograph before the deadline, his answers to our candidate questionnaire were not received before the deadline due to a form submission error. We've agreed to include his responses for this reason.
Incumbent: Yes
Age on Election Day: 28
City/township of residence: Wabana
Party: Republican
Where are you currently employed, and what is your role?
Owner of a Small Buisness
Please share any prior experience that you believe qualifies you for office.
I have BS in Public Administration from the University of North Dakota which I pursued for my passion to build strong communities like ours. I also had the opportunity to work for 2 years in Congressman Pete Stauber's District Office. This all combined with my last 4 years of legislative experience as a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives gives me not only the tools but the relationships to continue the work of the people of our district.
Please describe the roles and responsibilities of the office you are running for.
The role of a state representative is a vital and critical role in our communities. Not only for drafting and working on legislation, but also for building and creating partnerships to get things done. Not all issues we face are needed to be addressed by bills. In fact, most of the work of a representative is being a responsive, transparent, and active member of the community you serve. All of this combined is what creates an office for the people as a representative who works on issues, proposes and works on legislation, and advocates for the district, region, and state.
Why are you running for office?
I am running for re-election to continue the work of the people of House District 7A. Serving as our representative has been an amazing and humbling experience to not only deliver on the needs of our district, but also to create partnerships that are working and advocating to make our home even better. My experience in this life is all due to one thing, being raised right here in Northern Minnesota and the Iron Range. It is that upbring that lit a fire inside of me to serve and advocate for our home. We can have a thriving economy, vibrant schools, and communities that flourish if we continue to work together and return balance to St. Paul. That is why I am running for re-election so that together we can make the lives of all, better for good.
What are your priorities, if elected? Please describe specific policy goals.
The first and most important priority of mine if re-elected is to continue being a present representative who listens to all in our district and advocates for all of our issues in St. Paul. Some of those specific policy goals of mine are around energy. Energy is such a vital part of everyday life. From turning on a light switch, to powering our mines, energy is everything. That is why I would continue to work on bills that I have already authored like removing the nuclear energy moratorium, deeming biomass carbon neutral, and carbon capture and sequestration policy. These three policies together will help our district and state to diversify our energy grid in an all of the above approach so that we can have safe, affordable, and reliable power. I will also continue to work on policy around permitting and regulation reform that is vital for our current logging and mining industries, but also for the future of them as well. If we want to attract and retain new businesses that grow our communities and provide family wage jobs in labor and more, we need a permitting system that works and does so in a reasonable time span, so our district doesn't lose opportunities.
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?
Housing has always been a concern and an issue for our district that has only become more and more prevalent these past couple years. One of the ways we can help to address this is work on policy that keeps more money in the pockets of our people. Minnesota is now one of the highest taxed states in the nation and this is not helping with this problem. We need critical tax reform that returns money to the taxpayer. Combine this with creating partnerships between communities, local government, and business we can create ways to develop new types of housing that is affordable for all people. It will not be a one size fits all approach but by working together, returning more money to people, and developing housing that isn't burdened by the high costs of regulation, we can work to fix this problem.
What effective policies will you support that will prepare your district now, next year and in the future to improve resiliency against climate change?
I already spoke to some of the policy I am working on in energy to address this issue. Again, the future of energy is an all of the above approach. Resiliency is only attainable when the energy that is needed for our everyday life is affordable. We also can be doing more to prioritize communities that need assistance with water and other infrastructure projects. Those needs should always come first before other initiatives so we can not only have resilient communities in our district, but communities that will be able to grow and retain our families that work, live, and play in them.
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 one of the highest taxed states in the country. I believe that for Minnesotans and the people of our district we need to restructure our tax code for working families to keep more of their hard-earned money. At a time where inflation has been skyrocketing and the goods and services we rely on are getting more and more expensive, government needs to tighten its belt and return that money to the people with tax cuts. This means streamlining government and working to remove fraud and abuse of the people's money. Combine these tax initiatives with permitting and regulation reform we will bring in more business that will help to not only diversify our economy but our taxbase, lowering the burden for all.
How do you plan to improve transparency and trust in government?
Transparency and trust in government is a vital component to the future of our government. When our founding fathers created our government, it was built on the fact that the people would elect someone of their peers with whom they had trust in. This would bring trust to government so that it would work by the people for the people. As a representative I take this very seriously. Since being elected I have always worked to be as transparent in my votes, stances, and ideas that I partake as the people's representative. I publish a regular newsletter once a week when in session and work with local news to make sure people are informed. I also encourage people to not just email me but reach out to me by phone or text with my phone number that I publicly list. Again, this is all about a partnership and by being transparent and honest, we return that trust in government and can make a Minnesota that works for all people.
Aron Schnaser
Incumbent: No
Age on Election Day: 41
City/township of residence: Balsam Township
Party: DFL
Where are you currently employed, and what is your role?
I am a science teacher at Greenway High School in Coleraine, MN.
Please share any prior experience that you believe qualifies you for office.
As an educator, I’ve seen negative effects of some education bills that were signed into law, regardless of how well intentioned they were. As a healthy education system is vital for a healthy economy, they harm our economy as a whole. II know other public sectors face similar consequences as well, and community input and participation is vital to minimize these effects. I am helping strengthen our communities as a board member of Itasca Pride, which held its first annual Pride Festival this year and continues to hold events throughout the year. I am also a volunteer for Citizens Climate Lobby, a grassroots organization that works with elected leaders to pass bills to address climate change. I served as a CCL liaison for Senator Tina Smith’s office for about two years. Finally, I served as an AmeriCorps member at the St. Cloud Children’s Home, which taught me about the needs of the mental health industry as well as those who are just scraping by. My goal as a legislator is to bring a voice for those who feel they don’t have one. To achieve this goal, my scientific background will help me make effective decisions based on evidence and data while avoiding false or misleading information.
Please describe the roles and responsibilities of the office you are running for.
The basic role of a legislator is to represent the needs and wants of their constituents and pass legislation to meet those needs and wants as much as possible. To do this, it is important to build a strong economy that provides services, such as healthcare, education, transportation, public safety, and utilities while making sure there is affordable housing and access to nutritious food for those who are most in need.
Why are you running for office?
I am running because I want to make sure everyone feels represented, not political ideologies. As a member of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, I often feel like I don't have representation in the state legislature and I know other marginalized communities have similar feelings.
What are your priorities, if elected? Please describe specific policy goals.
We should strengthen our mining industry by processing the ore we mine right here instead of shipping it elsewhere. We can use that ore to build the infrastructure we need for a green power grid by producing power lines, iron-air batteries, wind turbines, and solar panels. We can produce much of what we need right here while creating good paying union jobs that will strengthen other economic sectors. We also need permitting reform to build the infrastructure needed for a green energy grid, so we can deliver that electricity across the country.
I want to fully fund our education system so the quality of education students receive isn't dictated by the zip code where they live. Over the last few decades, education funding hasn't kept up with rising costs and inflation. Schools in areas of high poverty areas, such as 7A, have had to cut back on classes and services wealthier areas can afford or increase funding through highly regressive property taxes which harm low income families the most. A large portion of education funding goes toward a for profit company to produce legally mandated standardized tests that are poor indicators of student performance. That is money that could be more effectively used in classrooms to help students and their families.
We should make sure that our individual rights and freedoms are preserved, especially for marginalized communities. Everyone should be able to live free from bigotry and discrimination, especially from their government. We need to work to reduce inequities in our government, particularly in our judicial system with a stronger emphasis on rehabilitation to reduce disproportionately high incarceration and recidivism rates among BIPOC individuals. I fully support a universal healthcare system that allows access to preventative care as well as reproductive freedom and gender affirming care.
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?
The State needs provide more funding to schools and local government agencies so they can provide the services communities they need without relying on regressive property taxes.
We need to increase the affordable housing supply by building more and incentivize more Section 8 housing and allow for more flexible zoning, such as multifamily or mixed use buildings. We also need to provide protections for those struggling to pay their rent or property taxes because they have fallen on hard times. No one deserves to lose their home because they are struggling through no fault of their own.
For many, lack of housing is often a large barrier to finding jobs, even if they are actively seeking because they lack a permanent address. I support housing first initiatives that provides permanent housing for job seekers who are experiencing homelessness to improve their dignity, self esteem, and attractiveness to employers.
What effective policies will you support that will prepare your district now, next year and in the future to improve resiliency against climate change?
We need to transition our power grid away using fossil fuels and switching to greener energy sources. We can manufacture these resources right here instead of allowing the fossil fuel industry to make record profits through price gouging. We also need permitting reform to build power lines capable of carrying electricity across the state and country. While the Inflation Reduction Act provides incentives already, there is more the State can do to educate and expand upon these programs.
We can build more electric vehicle charging stations, incentivize manufacturers to use more biodegradable packaging materials, as well as incentivize people to insulate their homes, replace inefficient appliances, or use other transportation methods, such as public transit, walking, or biking.
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.
Tax relief should first go toward helping low income families that are struggling the most. Many people are struggling to stay in their homes due to property tax increases, making it harder to pay bills. Tax policies that benefit the wealthy means fewer people are able to support our local businesses, which need lots of support to keep our local economies strong and healthy. We need progressive tax policies to keep the middle class strong instead of tax policies that concentrate wealth and leave more people struggling where they can't fully participate in our economy.
It is also vital to engage with constituents regularly and often to maintain transparency of the decisions I make and to obtain feedback. The more I engage with them, the more they can hold me accountable for making sure tax dollars are spent wisely. Their feedback will also help me to make sure they are going towards funding proposals that benefit them the most and weed out less effective proposals.
How do you plan to improve transparency and trust in government?
Transparency and trust is built on interacting with the communities I would represent. I plan on interacting with community members and groups in my district to show that I am listening to their needs and fighting for them.
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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