Minnesota’s re-configured 2nd CD was on the radars of a lot of folks as one that would be a close call. Incumbent Angie Craig (D) was elected to her second term in 2020 in a tight race. Her opponent in 2022 is again Tyler Kistner.
Kistner, it turns out, has been misrepresenting (some might call it lying) about his military record.
Writing in the Minnesota Reformer, reporter Deanna Winter took a close look at Kistner’s DD214’s — which had been released in 2020 after a local newspaper, the Prior Lake American, repeatedly requested them, and...well look at that...his claims of being in actual combat were not quite on the mark.
The Reformer has obtained additional examples of Kistner implying he saw combat action:
According to the Marine Corps awards manual, service members must engage the enemy, be under hostile fire, or be physically attacked by the enemy to be awarded a combat action ribbon. The manual says, “The principal eligibility criterion is that the individual must have rendered satisfactory performance under enemy fire while actively participating in a ground or surface combat engagement.”
Vote Vets, which is supporting Craig, called upon several area media outlets and streaming services to pull an ad in which Kistner repeats those claims.
The race for CD2 in 2020 also featured a weird/sad angle.
Adam Charles Weeks, who had been recruited by local Republican operative to run as a spoiler candidate under the Legal Marijuana Now banner, died unexpectedly, leaving behind a flurry of court filings and the eventual decision that the race needed to be conducted as scheduled.
Flash forward two years. Once again the race features a Legal Marijuana Now candidate (Minnesota has two “pot” parties...long story...), Paula Overby, who has run before both state wide and more locally. It was announced today that Overby passed away, scrambling an already tight race.
The MN Secretary of State’s office released a statement on the matter of the names on the ballot:
“In the absence of any other court order, the November 8, 2022 ballots will remain as printed, and the Congressional District 2 election will proceed as scheduled on November 8, 2022,” the office said in a statement.
With control of the US House likely coming down to a handful of contested seats, this one might be a sleeper in the bunch.
Further updates if they happen
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