Suburban DFL gut check: Paul Gardner feeling good

This concludes the coverage by Politics in Minnesota and the Saint Paul Legal Ledger Capitol Report team at the 2008 DFL State Convention. The convention still has to digest a very large number of national delegate contenders because everyone wants to go to Denver. We will release the results of the DFL's platform action agenda in the Morning Report later this week. Thanks for joining us, and click here to see all our convention coverage posts in fullscreen format.

Freshman Rep. Paul Gardner (DFL-Shoreview) is cranking up for the fall campaign, his third. (He ran unsuccessfully in 2004, and kept fighting to narrowly defeat arch-fiscal conservative former Rep. Phil Krinkie in 2006.)

Gardner's GOP-endorsed opponent this fall is John Kappler, a conservative who was endorsed in March after eight ballots (here's his website). Kappler's opponents were former Sen. Mady Reiter and Laura Merickel of Shoreview. There's a possibility Reiter may challenge Kappler in the primary: the Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board says her committee is still open. Gardner is "a little surprised" at how the suburban GOP units have been endorsing candidates, sticking with people who are "really pure on taxes."

During his freshman term, Gardner has been cutting a modern path presenting his work to constituents electronically. He's been getting into the multimedia thing, with a YouTube video about transportation posted in February. He also makes weekly posts about policy and local affairs on paulgardner53a.blogspot.com, and he encourages his fellow legislators to follow his lead. He likes to let people know what lobbyists have been seeing him, what's happening on his committees, and in his session wrap-up, where his bills entered law, often tucked deep within omnibus bills. (He's even got a Facebook account!)

Gardner has just started door-knocking again, and he's feeling pretty good about his chances of hanging onto his seat in the once-staunchly GOP district (consisting of Lexington, Circle Pines, and parts of Shoreview, North Oaks, Lino Lakes and Blaine). Why? Suburban DFL legislators have "found our voice;" it's even a bit "therapeutic" to doorknock and see how citizens feel about the legislative session.

He says that he can check off accomplishments in each area he campaigned on: education, health care, property taxes, the environment and transportation. "99 percent of the credit" should go to House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher (DFL-Minneapolis), in part because "every voice is heard" within the DFL caucus.

Gardner expects his team of 15 campaign folks to return for the summer campaign, more experienced and ready to win. Gardner believes his district sees a contrast between how the 2008 session concluded, versus the 2004 and 2006 sessions. Before, locals thought that "these guys can't finish on time," but today he hears, "Wow, you did it." People in his district are "not upset" about the gas tax hike, because they are "seeing results," including slating the reconstruction of I-694 between I-35W and I-35E for 2012. Even some GOP supporters say he "did what you needed to do" on matters like education.

Many of the Senate District 53 delegates are new to him: locals are energized, in no small part by U.S. Sen. Barack Obama's (D-IL) candidacy, although many delegates are motivated by state-level races, as well.

Initially, he was a Mike Ciresi supporter for the U.S. Senate, and came specifically to vote on the race, though he declined to declare his preference. Prior to the contest, he wasn't worried if balloting would take a long time. "After two weeks on the floor [of the House] straight, this is easy!"