Precinct caucus preview

By |

Minnesota’s 2010 election season officially begins Tuesday, with political party precinct caucuses around the state that will start the ball rolling toward November’s gubernatorial and legislative elections. Tuesday’s DFL and Republican Party caucuses will yield an unofficial look at the front-runners in the race to succeed Gov. Tim Pawlenty, with straw polls across the state from caucus participants showing who’s got the early edge in winning party endorsement.The Independence Party, Minnesota’s third major political party, will debut a virtual caucus that allows people to organize politically via the Internet.For more information Secretary of State Mark Ritchie’s Caucus FinderDFL PartyRepublican PartyIndependence PartyGreen PartyConstitution PartyPolitical organizers don’t expect participation in this year’s caucuses to match the 2010 presidential year, which saw hundreds of thousands of participants turn out, many for their first experience of grassroots politics.”We generally get 30,000 or 40,000 people statewide,” said Kristin Sosanie, DFL Party deputy communications director. “But Minnesotans have a history of good turnout and we’re optimistic this year will be no different.”Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie’s Web site describes precinct caucuses as “a conversation” among neighbors about which candidates their party should endorse for the coming election, which policy and philosophical stands their party should take, who should run the party and who among them should represent their neighborhood or town or city in political conventions from the local to the statewide level where the endorsements will be made.Attendees must be eligible to vote in the 2010 general election, live in the precinct and be in general agreement with the principles of the party whose caucus they’re attending. Ritchie’s office provides a one-stop shop for people to find the caucus they want to attend, using the Caucus Finder Web tool.The Secretary of State’s official Web site will also report the results of the Republican and DFL gubernatorial straw polls across the state. Ten candidates will be on the nonbinding DFL straw poll ballots statewide, and seven Republican candidates will be on their party’s ballot. Continue Reading

Minneapolis, St. Paul pet license rules differ dramatically

By |

Licensed pets are three times more likely to be returned to their owners than unlicensed pets, if they go missing.That’s one reason behind Minneapolis’s and St. Paul’s pet licensing requirements. But while they have the same goals, the two cities require very different things from pet-owning residents. Minneapolis is unveiling an online pet licensing system that allow owners to apply for tags for their dogs, cats, rabbits and ferrets from their own keyboard.Dog-owning St. Paul residents can download and print an application from the Web, but it must be mailed in or submitted in person. Continue Reading