A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 57
The candidate filing period for political races subject to a primary election ended on Tuesday, yielding a ballot with more than a few surprises. In Cloquet, councilors Lara Wilkinson, Iris Keller, Kerry Kolodge and Lyz Jaakola will all run unopposed, barring a write-in campaign mounted against any of them, on the Nov. 5 ballot. In Carlton County, the commissioners’ races are a tale of three different outcomes. To replace outgoing Dick Brenner in District 1, representing west Cloquet, Scanlon and Sawyer, Sarah Plante Buhs and Caleb Dunlap will...
Carlton County voters proved none too eager to decide presidential nominees earlier this week. Voters turned out for the presidential nomination primary Tuesday at a rate 10 percent lower than four years ago. Only 4,101 ballots were cast among 22,377 registered voters, or 18 percent, compared to a 28 percent turnout in 2020 on the way to the first go-round between Democrat incumbent President Joe Biden and Republican former president Donald Trump. "It has been a lower turnout for the...
Minnesota is among a cluster of states and territories holding presidential nominating contests in the main multistate voting event of the 2024 primary campaign. For that reason, it’s called Super Tuesday. Democratic President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are favored in their respective primaries and could inch closer to the delegate totals needed to gain the party nominations. Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota and former Republican Gov. Nikki Haley of South Carolina — the last major rivals to Biden or Trump — both... 
Website
Adopted by the state in 2016 and first practiced in 2020, the presidential nomination primary gets its second go-round in Minnesota on March 5. That's when the state will join 14 others as part of Super Tuesday. To prepare locally, the office of the Carlton County auditor and treasurer conducted one of its series of hourlong training sessions Monday at the Transportation Building along County Road 61. Roughly 40 election judges and township clerks were in attendance, as the county trains its ros...
Members of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa will have plenty of choices in the primary election April 2. Names for three Reservation Business Council positions — Chairperson, District I (Cloquet) Committeeperson and District III (Brookston) Committeeperson — were released Monday. They are listing in alphabetical order below. Candidates for chairperson include James Roy Blacketter III, Kevin R. Dupuis Sr., John A. McMillen, Bruce M. Savage and Victoria (“Vickie”) A. Smith. Dupuis is the incumbent. Candidates for District I include...
U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber, who represents Carlton County as part of the Eighth Congressional District, announced Monday that he will seek a fourth term in Congress. His announcement comes a week after Jen Schultz, a Democratic candidate, said she will run again against the Republican. The two exchanged barbs for a week in press releases and campaign pitches as the announcements rolled in. In between the announcements, Pres. Joe Biden visited Duluth and Superior to tout $1.06 billion in funding. Bef... Full story
Local attorney and Pine Knot News publisher Pete Radosevich is ready for Election Round 2, after an announcement Tuesday that he is running for Minnesota House of Representatives in District 11A. "I'm running for House District 11A because Carlton County is my home and I care about the issues unique to our community. While the other candidate is mimicking national issues, I feel we need a representative in St. Paul who is looking out for the issues that affect us, locally," Radosevich said in a... Full story
Ready or not, it’s time to start thinking about voting in what amounts to an election-heavy year. Next Friday, Jan. 19, marks the start of absentee voting for the state’s presidential nomination primary on March 5 — the first of three important election dates in 2024. Absentee voting begins 46 days before an election day. Subsequent election dates include the Aug. 13 primary and the general election on Nov. 5. Voters residing in Carlton County may cast in-person absentee ballots at the courthouse in Carlton (301 Walnut Ave., Room 205) from... Full story
Reliably blue and labor-centric throughout recent history, the city of Cloquet is experiencing something a lot of population centers are encountering: an encroaching red hue. Five of six precincts in the city contributed to the state's Democratic Farmer Labor sweep in major offices, including governor. Those precincts also favored Jen Schultz in the 8th Congressional District, despite the college professor and former state legislator being clobbered by incumbent Rep. Pete Stauber, a Republican...
The Cloquet city council canvassed votes Tuesday, making the final numbers official with a unanimous vote. Those vote totals included the write-in candidates for Cloquet’s Ward 3 city council race, with Iris Keller receiving 49 votes to Pete Erickson’s 40. The totals are meaningless, however, as they were too low to beat former city councilor Chris Swanson’s landslide 602 votes. The race for Ward 3 was, undoubtedly, the most confusing race in the county. Swanson was the sole candidate on the ballot, but cannot serve again as the Ward 3 counc...
In dribs and drabs, and sometimes huge rushes, throughout the wee hours of Wednesday morning, the results in the District 11A state house race came in. In the end, Republican Jeff Dotseth's third try at the seat proved successful as he won the district by 454 votes over Pete Radosevich, the DFL-backed candidate. Both were trying to replace Esko's Mike Sundin, who did not seek a sixth term representing Carlton County and adjoining townships in Pine and St. Louis counties. Dotseth, from Kettle... Full story
Election judges reported a steady stream of voters all day Tuesday, with many expressing surprise at such a good turnout for the midterm elections. Thomson Township clerk Rhonda Peleski said they had a line that wrapped through the community room for much of the day, reporting that 2,134 residents voted in person at Thomson Town Hall, the polling place for Carlton County's largest precinct. "It was a long day. Really busy," Peleski said. In Cloquet, Ward 2 residents voted at the public library....
Prior to Tuesday night, the only real talk of "trifectas" in Minnesota state government had been from the GOP side - that Republican Scott Jensen could knock off incumbent DFL Gov. Tim Walz while the GOP also pulled off full control of the Legislature. As the sleep-deprived fog of the 2022 Minnesota state election evaporates, it's clear few had "DFL trifecta" in their office pool. But that's what happened, despite an election where historical trends, most of the main issues and polling were... Website
Three of five candidates were going to be elected to the Cloquet School Board on Tuesday. Sarah Plante Buhs didn’t have the faintest idea she’d be the top vote-getter. “I’m very appreciative, and I was very surprised with what the outcome was,” she told the Pine Knot the next day. “I was not expecting that much support. It’s nice to see; we have a great community.” Plante Buhs won 3,196 votes (25.9%) followed by incumbents David Battaglia, with 2,706 votes (21.9%), and Gary “Hawk” Huard at 2,367 (19.2%). Battaglia was “appreciative” of the four... Full story
There will be no new faces on the Thomson Township Board of Supervisors following the 2022 midterm election, as all three incumbent candidates were re-elected to their spots on the board. The board’s current chairperson, Ruth Janke, defeated Parrish Silbernagel to maintain her seat on the board. Janke brought in 1,810 votes (78.56%), with Silbernagel garnering 482 (20%). Former chairperson and long-time board member Terry Hill also handily defeated a challenger. Amna Hanson fell short of unseating Hill, with 766 votes (33%) to Hill’s 1,549 vot... Full story
Incumbent State Senator Jason Rarick (R-Pine City) won easily in the District 11 race, with 22,111 votes (61%) to 14,152 (39%) for challenger Michelle Boyechko (DFL-Tamarack). He praised Boyechko for running a passionate and positive campaign, like previous opponents. "I see so many negatives in other races, that hasn't happened in our district," he said, noting that they both stuck to the issues during candidate forums rather than attacking one another. "That's something I really appreciate. It...
The long months of campaigning are peaking now, with Election Day on Tuesday and both local and national candidates trying to reach people who have yet to vote. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 8. There are polling locations in the cities of Cloquet, Carlton, Moose Lake, Scanlon, Wrenshall and Wright. Townships with polls include Atkinson, Automba, Barnum, Blackhoof, Eagle, Lakeview, Mahtowa, Moose Lake, Perch Lake, Silver, Silver Brook, Skelton, Thomson and Twin Lakes. Voters in Cloquet’s Ward 2 should head to the C... Full story
There was little back-and-forth between the two candidates for the state House of Representatives District 11A seat at the Cloquet Area Chamber of Commerce candidate forum Oct. 25. Incumbent Democrat Mike Sundin of Esko chose not to seek another term, so now perennial Republican challenger Jeff Dotseth of Kettle River will face DFL-backed Pete Radosevich of Cloquet. The two spent about 30 minutes answering questions from moderator Tony Sertich. It was the final portion of an evening that... Full story
Candidates for Minnesota Senate District 11A worked overtime last week, facing off in two candidate forums in three days. Tuesday's event was sponsored by the Cloquet Chamber of Commerce, while the forum in Moose Lake on Thursday was organized by the Land Stewardship Action Fund. In both instances, incumbent Jason Rarick, R-Pine City, and challenger Michelle Boyechko, DFL-Tamarack, established their differing viewpoints from the start. Rarick stressed his eight years of experience at the state... Full story
Four of five candidates for school board weighed in at the Cloquet Area Chamber of Commerce candidate forum Oct. 25. In the wake of two lockdowns within the past year, the topic of school safety drew provocative responses from an incumbent and newcomer alike. Both advocated for a stronger security presence in Cloquet’s public schools. “I would support having professionals in the building, some of our professionals, carefully screened and carefully trained and able to use special tactics and tools to stop a threat,” incumbent Ted Lammi said.... Full story
The Cloquet city council chambers was a revolving door Tuesday, as candidates for six races answered questions in the Cloquet Area Chamber of Commerce candidate forum, an election year tradition. All of the forums ran smoothly, with a quiet and polite Minnesota audience made up mostly of other candidates, their supporters and a handful of interested citizens. It was a far cry from most national or even statewide televised debates, with no rudeness or verbal fireworks, and zero rebuttals until th... Full story
In a subdivision in suburban Medina, Republican state auditor candidate Ryan Wilson went door to door to make his pitch to voters. The attorney and former CEO of a medical auditing company knocked, readied his hand-outs and then launched into his spiel about why he’s vying to unseat first-term DFL Auditor Julie Blaha. “I started to run for state auditor, because people had a lot of questions, they want to understand what's happening in their government,” Wilson told a voter last Thursday. “They want to understand where the money was going.... Website
STATE SENATE District 11 Republican: Jason Rarick (Incumbent) Briefly summarize your personal background and qualifications. (limit 50 words) I am a lifelong resident of Pine County, a union electrician, and self-employed electrical contractor. I have served in the legislature for eight years now, primarily focused on issues related to jobs, energy, higher education. Please describe where you stand on the following issues in 25 words or fewer (each): • The unspent $7.2 billion budget surplus? I... Full story
STATE REPRESENTATIVE District 11A Republican: Jeff Dotseth Briefly summarize your personal background and qualifications. (limit 50 words) I am a husband, father, grandfather, farmer, realtor, small business owner and former township board supervisor who is looking to bring common sense to our state government and make sure the people of District 11A once again are heard. Please describe where you stand on the following issues in 25 words or fewer (each): • The unspent $7.2 billion budget s... Full story
CARLTON COUNTY COMMISSIONER Mark Thell (Incumbent) Briefly summarize your personal background and qualifications. (Limit 50 words) Lifelong resident of County, Enlisted United States Air Force, Retired Potlatch Machine operator. Family farmer direct marketing grass fed beef, pork and chicken. Served as elected supervisor for the Carlton County Soil and Water District before being elected County Commissioner in 2018. Married with four adult children and seven grandchildren. What made you decide... Full story
