Pro-Gun Republican Wins Tight Race For Minnesota State Senate

While the media has spent a lot of time bragging about the supposed Blue Wave that wasn’t, it’s important to remember that November is over. It’s 2019 now and things have started to change. Democrats have a bit of power in Washington, and they’re acting rather stupid with it.

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I kind of wonder if that played into a special election in Minnesota where a Republican won a Democratic district in a tight race [emphasis mine]:

Republican Jason Rarick won a hotly contested special election for an east-central Minnesota state Senate seat Tuesday, flipping a district long held by Democrats to give his party more power in the state Legislature.

Rarick, a state representative from Pine City, defeated Democrat Stu Lourey 52 percent to 46 percent in the 11th Senate District. John Birrenbach of the Legal Marijuana Now Party captured about 2 percent of the vote.

Rarick succeeds former state Sen. Tony Lourey, D-Kerrick, who resigned to take a job as Gov. Tim Walz’s Human Services commissioner.

The win means Republicans will expand their narrow majority in the state Senate by one vote. The new 35-32 split may make it more difficult for Walz and Democrats in control of the state House to pass proposals this session key to their agenda, including bills related to guns, health care and a gas tax. Republicans celebrated the shift in power late Tuesday.

“We’re going to do great things in the Senate,” Rarick said Tuesday night.“We are going to stop everything they are pushing through the House.”

Rarick was recently elected to a third term representing the southern half of the district in the state House. On the campaign trail, he emphasized his support for gun rights and abortion restrictions, as well as his background as an electrician. That past work helped him land endorsements from a handful of trade unions, which he also touted heavily in his communication with voters.

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In other words, a pro-gun candidate won a Democratic district.

Boom.

OK, it’s just one win in a state with a Republican majority in the Senate. Democrats still maintain control of the House in Minnesota, so how much of a difference does it make?

Well, it’s still a win.

Let’s remember that just two years ago Democrats touted every win they could find as proof that the Blue Wave was coming and that President Trump’s days were numbered. They even took defeats as proof of that, claiming that the margin was a little closer and that somehow proved Trump’s popularity was over.

A win like this would have had them crowing for months.

For me, a pro-gun candidate winning in a Democratic district is a big thing. It signals that the pendulum on guns may be finally starting to swing back. Maybe Democrats are starting to revert back to form where they may dislike guns, but it’s not the driving issue anymore.

Or maybe these Democrats got some sense and recognized that guns in and of themselves aren’t the problem. The problem lies in the people misusing them.

I won’t hold my breath, but I’m very happy to see Rarick win even if I don’t live in the state.

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