THE MORNING AFTER…
A quick turn is how I think of election night into morning take radio and the tipsheet. Seems like quick is not the goal of counties or the reporting systems. The dump of multiple precincts has changed the election night analysis.
At midnight we learned that Rep. Kaohly Her upset Mayor Carter – in Minneapolis we’ll learn more tonight.
We’ll have 2 new special MN House elections in the coming months – likely DFL seats, but that adds to a little more drama we don’t need in 2025 Minnesota politics.
NY has a Democratic Socialist new Mayor, but 69 percent of those polled in exit polls say they aren’t Democratic Socialists.
Key races across the U.S. yesterday went Democratic - outperforming polls and 2024 results in Virginia, New Jersey, New York and more. HILL: https://fluence-media.co/3LpzLn2
The current federal shutdown is now the longest in U.S. history. CBS: https://fluence-media.co/47EvhjX
Today is National Stress Awareness Day…timely considering my schedule.
Blois - tips: bloisolson@gmail.com
The latest insight memo from Fluence Advisory on the loss of institutional knowledge from the Minnesota Legislature. READ: https://fluence-advisory.com/insights/
UPSET - ST. PAUL
Rep. Kaohly Her upset Mayor Melvin Carter in St. Paul. A sign that the level of discontent in the city was much greater than Carter ever considered. Her entered the race in August and had a small group of boosters that built momentum and raised enough questions that voters decided that Her was a better choice.
Her, who was a close ally of the late Speaker Melissa Hortman, immediately becomes a rising star in the DFL, something that Hortman shared years ago. Her’s victory means that there will be another special election for her house seat.
Via TPT’s Mary Lahammer, QUOTE: “I got into this race after the assassination of my good friends Mark and Melissa Hortman over the summer. Melissa always told us —‘These seats don’t belong to us, we need to go out and earn the right to represent people.’ Tonight, we honored her legacy”
Key supporters of Her included her campaign manager Matt Wagenius, union leader Kris Fredson, longtime labor leader Jason George, St. Paul stalwart Rich Ginsberg, public affairs and public safety advocate Patrick Connelly.
Her’s victory can be traced to the inaction of Mayor Carter on downtown development, his lack of deep engagement in the city the past four years. Her is likely to lean into a City Council that may welcome her fiscal focus and foresight, and a culture of collaboration for the city, rather than the conflict that had emerged the past few years.
One takeaway from the Her victory is that she didn’t campaign as a harsh or negative voice against Mayor Carter. She was just herself, she didn’t attack aggressively – she just reflected the sense that more could be done in St. Paul and that she was carrying the feelings of many voters. They rewarded her, and Carter underestimated Her.
A new level of insight and information….
Fluence Media introduces more - Insider Analysis & Insight from TheDailyAgenda.com
Weekly deep-dive political analysis and breaking news
A monthly insight-filled briefing memo on Minnesota and Midwest economy
Early access to our Fluence Forum audio and video assets.
A free morning take mug
BUCKET TRUCK: via Xcel Energy, VERBATIM: “On a crisp autumn morning in Waconia, Minnesota, Laketown Elementary buzzed with excitement as fifth grader Grant Scotting kept his eyes trained on the parking lot. A birthday surprise for Scotting was in the works — and soon it rolled up: a shiny Xcel Energy bucket truck. Scotting, who has special needs and is nonverbal, is known for his love of Xcel Energy. His enthusiasm for the local energy company ranges from reporting outages on his family’s iPad to eagerly opening each monthly bill.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4oq7uei (SPONSORED: Xcel Energy)
MORE RESULTS
Preliminary election results for key races in Minneapolis, St. Paul, Senate District 29 and Senate District 47 are below. More results and analysis will be shared this week as tabulations continue. Via Office of the Sec. of State, DATA: https://fluence-media.co/3JCsrUD
MPLS (1ST ROUND):
● MAYOR: Jacob Frey: 42% | Omar Fateh: 32% | DeWayne Davis: 14% | Jazz Hampton: 10%
Expect a result in the Minneapolis Mayor’s race this afternoon. The test is whether the Hampton-Fateh-Davis coalition can hold tight. If not, Frey should win.
NOTE: Jazz Hampton had a positive impact on this race, however, his social media posts claiming that his polling showed him near 50 percent prove that polling must be done by professionals and TikTok views are not a credible measure of support.
COUNCIL: There is one council race in the balance – Ward 5, which favors “Team Mpls” however the veto proof majority is a hollow victory when governing will remain tense and awkward at Minneapolis City Hall.
● WARD 1: Elliott Payne: 65% | Brian Strahan: 29%
● WARD 2: Robin Wonsley: 60% | Shelley Madore: 32%
● WARD 3: Michael Rainville: 74% | Marcus Mills: 26%
● WARD 4: LaTrisha Vetaw: 61% | Marvina Haynes: 32%
● WARD 5: Pearll Warren: 38% | Ethrophic Burnett: 28% | Miles Wilson: 14% | Anndrea Young: 12%
● WARD 6: Jamal Osman: 59% | Mohamoud Hassan: 40%
● WARD 7: Elizabeth Shaffer: 52% | Katie Cashman: 46%
● WARD 8: Soren Stevenson: 56% | Josh Bassais: 39%
● WARD 9: Jason Chavez: 77% | Daniel Orban: 22%
● WARD 10: Aisha Chughtai: 59% | Lydia Millard: 37%
● WARD 11: Jamison Whiting: 63% | Mariam DeMello: 29%
● WARD 12: Aurin Chowdhury: 62% | Becka Thompson: 33%
● WARD 13: Linea Palmisano: 94%
TREND: The large victories for DSA candidates in what All of Mpls and others suggested were competitive races should raise serious questions if certain wards can be competitive. Meanwhile, the margin in more moderate wards shows that there is a deep divide between the wealthier moderate progressives and the left-edge progressives. That means there are two Minneapolis’ and much depends on the neighborhoods. One major factor for the “Team Mpls” group was in Ward 10 and Ward 2, carpetbagger candidates were at a major disadvantage and the “Mpls for Many” candidates out organized moderate-progressives.
LEGISLATURE
SD29:
● Michael Holmstrom Jr. (GOP): 62% | Louis McNutt (DFL): 38%
SD47:
● Amanda Hemmingsen-Jaeger (DFL): 61% | Dwight Dorau (GOP): 39%
SCHOOL BOARDS: Here is a link to all the school board races in Minnesota. FOX9: https://fluence-media.co/3JiWG2T
REFERENDUMS: Greater Minnesota school funding referendums were more challenged including rejections in Hibbing which rejected a $1.3 million ask and Aitkin where voters rejected $60 million in referendum asks. Meanwhile, in Lakeville passed a $43.9 million initiative. The Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan referendum for $154 million passed overwhelmingly. RESULTS: https://fluence-media.co/43dbLto
DULUTH: via WDIO, VERBATIM: “City Question 1: whether or not a tenant’s “right-to-repair” measure should be on the books…Unofficial results show that Duluthians chose to overwhelmingly support the idea…The measure gives tenants the right to have repairs performed in their homes, should their landlord fail to respond. The cost of the repair, up to $500 dollars, or half a month’s rent, could then be deducted from the next month’s payment…Duluth Tenants, a renters union organized by the group TakeAction Minnesota, are the ones responsible for getting the question on the ballot, which they did via a petition process.” WATCH/READ: https://fluence-media.co/3WEZNoM
BROADBAND: Comcast is rewriting the broadband playbook in the Twin Cities. From neighborhood networks to next-gen tech, we’re delivering community-first internet connectivity with no contracts, no surprises. The new Xfinity package means unlimited data, blazing-fast, reliable speeds and a 5-year price guarantee, plus free mobile for a year. It’s not the old Comcast — it’s a bold new era of connection. Let’s power the future, together. LEARN MORE: https://fluence-media.co/Comcast2025-1 (SPONSORED: Comcast)
INSIGHT
ISSUES: Voters speaking to Minnesota news outlets frequently named affordability as their main concern yesterday. Via KARE 11, VERBATIM: “A top issue for both candidates and voters is access to affordable housing. … [Minneapolis voter] Miki House [said] ‘Prices are significant and they are increasing.’ … Ryan Allen, a professor and associate dean for research at the University of Minnesota, [said] new supply has got to be a part of the solution.” ALLEN: “Part of the reason we find ourselves in this situation is, particularly during the pandemic and immediately after the pandemic, new construction really stalled in many parts of the country, let alone in Minnesota.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/3WH72fV
TURNOUT: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Approximately 116,196 Minneapolis residents had voted as of 5 p.m., including 26,386 early/absentee and 89,810 at the polls. That’s 45.9% — nearly half of all registered voters. … A modest turnout of about 75 people, primarily students, had voted by Tuesday afternoon at the University of Minnesota’s Weisman Art Museum, head election judge Mikki Murray said. In her many years overseeing the polling location, she’s noticed a stark contrast between student turnout in presidential election years vs. for races in odd years. … Turnout in Ramsey County, where St. Paul and some suburbs have races on the ballot, [was] on pace with expectations. … In St. Cloud, election judges said turnout was higher than anticipated for races for the Stearns County Board and St. Cloud school board.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3JGunvb
ST PAUL: via KARE 11, VERBATIM: “After Tuesday, the Twin Cities will go their separate ways in their approaches to mayoral elections. … A 2024 ballot question approved by St. Paul voters will shift future municipal elections from odd years to even years, in order to match the cycle of federal elections. That means the next mayor will serve a three-year term and that future mayoral elections will coincide with presidential elections, which tend to garner two-to-three times the turnout as recent St. Paul city elections.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/3WEiMjm
ANOKA-HENN: via Sahan Journal, VERBATIM: “Anoka-Hennepin voters reelected all three incumbents in a politically divided school board Tuesday night, meaning partisan gridlock is likely to continue. Kacy Deschene and Jeff Simon, who often vote with the board’s more liberal bloc, won their reelection bids. … Conservative Matt Audette, who was hoping to expand the board’s conservative bloc, [has] also won his reelection bid. … The [board] faces frequent gridlock over issues with a 3-3 political split.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4oWWdm4
BETTING: Via Star Tribune’s Deena Winter, traders bet over $1.3 million on the Minneapolis mayor’s race through Polymarket, a prediction market platform, meaning that “more money has been wagered on this one betting site…than any of the mayoral campaigns raised.” Betting on the outcomes of elections has become increasingly popular in recent years on sites like Polymarket and Kalshi. TWEET: https://fluence-media.co/43N270H
MNGOV
AUDIT: via OLA press release, VERBATIM: “The Office of the Legislative Auditor’s Financial Audit Division has released the performance audit [for] Office of the Governor. … The Office of the Governor and Lieutenant Governor generally did not comply with the criteria we tested. We identified a significant number of instances of noncompliance and internal control deficiencies related to receipts, inventory, and payroll and nonpayroll expenditures. … The audit’s key findings and recommendations [were] presented to the Legislative Audit Commission.” REPORT: https://fluence-media.co/47oZXXt
MORE: via KSTP, VERBATIM: “There are no allegations of fraud — the issues mostly amounted to sloppy bookkeeping. ‘The main thing we’re concerned about here is the lack of internal controls that create an opportunity for something worse to happen,’ said Minnesota Legislative Auditor Judy Randall. … The Governor’s Office says it has already resolved 11 of the 12 issues identified in the report.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4nG53Ui
ASSASINATION: via WCCO-TV, VERBATIM: “Brooklyn Park police say the officer who fired his weapon when he encountered Vance Boelter at state Rep. Melissa Hortman’s home did so in accordance with department policy. Boelter is accused of killing Hortman and her husband. … Brooklyn Park police say the officers ‘performed a rescue’ of Mark Hortman from the doorway of the home, and neither was aware of any other victims in the home at the time. Their conduct during the shooting was consistent with the department’s policy and training, officials said Tuesday.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4oRkj1t
MOVE: via Office of the Governor, VERBATIM: “Governor Tim Walz today announced the appointment of Robin Hutcheson as Chair of the Metropolitan Council, effective December 1, 2025, for a term expiring on January 4, 2027.
40 YEARS OF PARTNERSHIP: Flint Hills Resources and Ducks Unlimited (DU) are celebrating 40 years of partnership, a longevity landmark that makes Flint Hills one of DU’s longest-standing corporate partners. Working together over the past four decades, Flint Hills and DU have contributed to conserving more than 250,000 acres of wildlife habitat and natural areas in Minnesota and over 900,000 acres across North America. LEARN MORE: Flint Hills Resources and Ducks Unlimited Celebrate 40 Years of Partnership (SPONSORED: Flint Hills Resources)
ECONOMY
LAYOFFS: via Bring Me The News, VERBATIM: “A St. Paul-based home health provider is ending operations and laying off over 400 employees. Dependable Home Healthcare notified the state of the impending closure this week. … Layoffs will be conducted in six phases, beginning Jan. 3, 2026, and concluding March 13, 2026, according to the notice. All employees, including 38 administrators and 368 care providers, are losing their jobs. … It’s the latest in a growing number of major layoffs in the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota as the economy continues to struggle.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/43eK0Rd
MORE: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “The company cited ‘business challenges and upcoming regulatory changes impacting the Minnesota home care industry.’ … The closure follows Gov. Tim Walz’s announcement of a third-party audit of several of the state’s Medicare waiver programs. … Dependable Home Healthcare provides some services that are subject to the current audit.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/49HE6vM
POT BIZ: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Aspiring entrepreneurs say opening a recreational cannabis business in Minnesota has not been easy as they struggle to find locations and comply with local regulations. St. Paul hopes to change that by adding a cannabis oversight job to the city’s payroll in 2026. That staff member will help businesses register, find properly zoned locations and stay within the bounds of local laws. The city of Minneapolis already has a similar staff position.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/43Sd80K
AG GRANTS: via DEED press release, VERBATIM: “The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) today awarded $2.4 million to seven local partners to develop and implement agriculture-focused workforce training programs for the Growing Careers initiative. … Growing Careers grant recipients are eligible for up to $500,000 to develop training programs to help more Minnesotans enter agricultural careers, specifically dislocated workers. … The [grants] will fund on-the-job training, career navigation and worker support services, and paid work experience.” READ/LIST: https://fluence-media.co/438LpJa
ACROSS MN
MPS: via KSTP, VERBATIM: “Teachers across Minneapolis could walk off the job next Tuesday. Many parents in the school district are making plans for what to do with their kids if the teachers strike. … The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board is working on a plan to help students and families if teachers strike. It will include opening some rec centers early and offering increased daytime youth programs.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/47DQPwV
RAMSEY CTY: via Pioneer Press, VERBATIM: “Ramsey County will provide $450,000 to [support] local food shelves and buy infant formula as the federal shutdown continues, county officials announced Tuesday. The one-time funding includes $380,000 to local food shelves for county residents, and $70,000 will be reserved to purchase infant formula if there are significant disruptions to [WIC]. … There are approximately 35,500 households, or 68,500 individuals, in the county that receive [SNAP] benefits.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/48X776y
DULUTH: via Bring Me The News, VERBATIM: “Multiple YMCAs in northeastern Minnesota, as well as in Superior, Wis., are offering free memberships for furloughed federal workers. … The Duluth Area Family YMCA and Superior Douglas County Family YMCA will offer furloughed workers and their families a free membership for the month of November. … A representative further tells Bring Me The News that, if the shutdown lasts into December, both YMCA networks plan to extend the offer for December as well.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4oSjaqk
BEMIDJI: via Bemidji Pioneer, VERBATIM: “The Bemidji City Council revisited two road projects for 2026 during Monday’s meeting and passed both with an extended assessment fee window to ease the financial burden on residents. … Each resident within the project area will be assessed $45 per lineal foot of the property, plus a sanitary sewer service line, costing $1,070, and a water service line, costing $1,070. … Residents can avoid paying interest if they pay the assessment in full before Nov. 30. Additionally, deferrals exist for senior citizens, those who are disabled and current, active-duty military members — including the National Guard.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4nA6vHt
COMING UP
TODAY: Governor Tim Walz will purchase his deer hunting license and participate in a roundtable discussion with hunting and conservation organizations. In the afternoon, he will hold calls with McKnight Foundation President Tonya Allen and Cirrus Aircraft CEO Zean Nielsen, and meet with leadership from Niron Magnetics.
TODAY-TMRW: via MN House, VERBATIM: “The House Capital Investment Committee will begin their fourth regional tour of the fall, visiting communities in Southeast Minnesota. This bipartisan tour will consist of state infrastructure project proposals, which will be considered for inclusion in a 2026 Capital Investment Bill.” On Wednesday, they’ll tour Apple Valley, Lakeville, Northfield, Faribault, Waseca, Albert Lea, and Austin. On Thursday, they’ll tour Rochester, Forestville, Winona, Wabasha, Hastings, Newport, and South St. Paul. SCHEDULE: https://fluence-media.co/3WAu4oQ
SATURDAY: A protest will be held at the Capitol as part of the “National Handmaids’ Day of Action” on Saturday, Nov. 8. Speakers will include elected officials and organizers with 50501, Indivisible, and other groups. The event is at 1:00 p.m.
BDAYS: Rep. Walter Hudson, rockstar Jason Branby, MinnPost’s Elizabeth Dunbar, DFL insider Ron Harris, Private Business leader Jim Schultz, reporter Mary Divine, Park Board member Meg Forney
SPEAKER: If you’re looking for a speaker about the “Signal vs. Noise” dynamic of today’s politics and the 2026 election. EMAIL: BloisOlson@gmail.com.
FORUM: The agenda for the Fluence Advisory - Fluence Forum – The State of Health Care forum will be released later this week. Email bolson@fluence-advisory.com for more information and sponsorship information.
SPONSORS: Sponsorships are available to reach over 30,000 readers per day on Fluence’s tip sheets and website, TheDailyAgenda.com – email BloisOlson@gmail.com.
Send us your tips at BloisOlson@gmail.com
IN MEMORIAM: morning take from now to the future is in memory of Melissa Hortman her accessibility, leadership and commitment to public service.
Fluence Media curates, produces and distributes specialized media products to thought leadership audiences across the Midwest and about the region. Our publications cover, politics, public policy, health care, agriculture, business, real estate, sports and more. Visit www.fluence-media.com to learn more.
about morning take: Founded in 2010, morning take has grown to become the leading Minnesota morning newsletter on politics and news of the day. Published by Fluence Media since 2012 the mission is to "make you smarter" before breakfast.
Copyright © 2025 Fluence Media, All rights reserved.
Thanks for reading The Daily Agenda! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.