Voters in politically conservative southern Minnesota chose Brad Finstad, a pro-Trump Republican, over Democrat Jeff Ettinger in a closer-than-expected special election on Tuesday to complete the term of the late Rep. Jim Hagedorn, who was a member of the House Agriculture Committee.
Finstad and Ettinger are on the November general election ballot for a two-year term to represent the First House District, which runs across the bottom of the state, from the Mississippi River on the east to the South Dakota border on the west.
Although Donald Trump carried the district by 10 percentage points in 2020, Finstad defeated Ettinger by just 4 points, 51-47. “The general election will feature the same major party nominees in a fundamentally similar district, so given the fairly close result, we think bumping its outlook down from Safe Republican to Likely Republican is warranted,” said Sabato’s Crystal Ball, a political analysis and handicapping newsletter.
A farmer and former state legislator, Finstad was the USDA state director for rural development during the Trump administration. The first item on his campaign website’s list of “Brad’s values” was “Pro-Trump,” followed by “Pro-Gun” and “Pro-Life.”
“I will work to slash inflation, get control of the border, restore American energy independence, and put our families first,” said Finstad in a victory statement.
Ettinger, former chief executive of meat processor Hormel Foods, said despite the 4-point loss in the special election, “we outperformed pundits and polls, and we have momentum in a new, advantageous district,” reported MinnPost.