Finstad wins District 1 special election, will serve until January

Republican Brad Finstad won the Aug. 9 special election in Minnesota’s First Congressional District to fill the remaining term of GOP congressman Jim Hagedorn, who died in February of cancer.
Finstad, a former legislator and USDA rural development director, received 51 percent of votes to defeat DFL nominee and former Hormel CEO Jeff Ettinger who garnered 47 percent of votes.
Finstad will serve the remainder of the term, which ends in January.
District 1 voters on Aug. 9 also voted in the primary election for that seat to decide party nominees for the November general election.
Finstad won more than 75 percent of Republican votes and Ettinger garnered more than 92 percent of the DFL votes.
The two candidates will again face each other in November, when voters will decide who goes to Washington for a full two-year term in the redrawn district.
Local voting questions can be directed to the Rock County Auditor Treasurer at 507-283-5060.
Information about the candidates and the process can be found at the Secretary of State’s website, sos.state.mn.us.