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Capitol View®
Mike Mulcahy

St. Louis County commissioner plans GOP Senate run against Franken

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Chris Dahlberg photo
St. Louis County Commissioner Chris Dahlberg (Photo/Chris Dahlberg)

Another Minnesota Republican is entering next year's race for the U.S. Senate.

St. Louis County Commissioner Chris Dahlberg says he wants to run against DFL incumbent Al Franken.

Dahlberg, 51, says he'll do an official campaign kick-off in the next few weeks. His intentions were previewed in an email sent to fellow Republicans by GOP donor and Hubbard Broadcasting CEO Stanley S. Hubbard, who said Dahlberg would make a particularly strong candidate.

Dahlberg chairs the St. Louis County Board of Commissioners. He was first elected in 2008 and re-elected in 2012. He's a former Duluth city council member, an attorney and an Iraq war veteran who is still in the U.S. Army Reserves. He plans to retire from the Army on Oct. 1.

“I realize that I’m not well known outside of Northeastern Minnesota, so the only way to change that is to meet as many people as I can during the coming year,” said Dahlberg in a press release confirming his intention to seek the seat. “I’m humbled that Mr. Hubbard likes what I stand for, and I intend to show all Minnesotans – regardless of political orientation – that I’ll bring a common-sense, balanced and fiscally conservative approach to representing them in Washington, D.C.”

Dahlberg is poised to enter what is already becoming a crowded field of Republican hopefuls.  Business executive Mike McFadden, state Rep. Jim Abeler, R-Anoka, and state Sen. Julianne Ortman, R- Chanhassen have already announced they're running for the GOP nomination.