MNpublius.com

I spoke with Mike Rothman this afternoon and he confirmed that he will not be entering the 3rd district race to replace Congressman Jim Ramstad.

Rothman explained: “Quite frankly I considered it because there’s simply no more important time than now for a Democrat to represent the people of this district. But I am confident we have strong Democratic candidates to run.”

“The people in the 3rd Congressional District deserve a Democrat to represent them because Democrats best fit their views on bringing an end to the war in Iraq, balancing the budget, assuring health care for children, and other key issues.”

Some quick background on Mike for those of you who may not know him:

An attorney in private practice, Rothman is currently Finance Chair of the Minnesota DFL Party, Chair of the DFL State Convention Committee, a Founder and Co-chair of the DFL Lawyers Committee, and Co-chair of the DFL Constitution Commission. He has represented various campaigns and candidates including Secretary of State Mark Ritchie’s campaign and St. Louis County Attorney Melanie Ford’s winning campaign last November, one of the largest recounts in MN history.

Rothman began public service as Former Congressman Bill Luther’s Administrative Assistant in the Minnesota Senate where Rothman handled leadership policy issues.

Well, that leaves the list of other possible candidates slowly dwindling. State Representative Steve Simon, Steve Kelley (although we’ve been hearing he’s almost for sure not in) and Edina Mayor Jim Hovland remain the only potentials still on the radar (on the DFL side). Senator Teri Bonoff is the only declared DFL candidate running in the 3rd.