Elections

Minnesota's 2013 legislative session will forever be known as the one that legalized same-sex marriages. Yet while many were celebrating this act the governor and the legislature are on the verge of adopting legislation that takes a giant step toward undoing political reform in the state and significantly increasing the chances that special interest money will further damage the Minnesota elections and law making process. The result is more money out of the taxpayer wallet funding special interest projects while legislators get free meals and gifts from lobbyists.

The State House has passed an election reform bill that has some good stuff in it, though not all good, and there’s a big omission. Still, it’s an improvement, and the House DFL can’t be accused of entirely blowing their chance, which is something I was concerned about. Like many lefty bloggers, I expressed concern some legislators would get skittish and forget they won a mandate to do some things. Most such posts I’ve seen have been about marriage equality, which is reasonable since there is a screamingly obvious opportunity to make progress there, and choking at the crucial moment seems off the agenda. I was thinking more broadly in that post in early January, including a large portion devoted to election reform. The photo ID amendment, while a lousy idea, led to a broader discussion about our election system, and its defeat offered a chance to address some things, some of which did get addressed: