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Serving Northern St. Louis County, Minnesota

Here’s what I know about our commissioner candidates

Marshall Helmberger
Posted 9/25/14

With just over five weeks before the midterm elections, there’s little question the political season is in full swing. And while there are plenty of big races we’re watching with interest, the …

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Here’s what I know about our commissioner candidates

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With just over five weeks before the midterm elections, there’s little question the political season is in full swing. And while there are plenty of big races we’re watching with interest, the top local contest is clearly the battle between Tom Rukavina and Christina Hujanen for the St. Louis County Commissioner’s seat in the Fourth District. It’s a fascinating contest, pitting two candidates with exceptional personal skills against one another for a political office in which such skills are critically important.

As our longtime readers know, the Timberjay doesn’t make political endorsements and we’re not going to change that policy in this case. And that’s about more than just striving for consistency. I’ve known both Tommy and Christina for years and consider each of them a good friend, which makes the prospect of endorsing one over the other particularly difficult. You hate to lose a friend over politics, after all.

I can, however, tell you a bit about what I’ve learned about the two of them over the years, and why I am confident that, one way or another, we will have a very capable and hard-working commissioner representing the Fourth District come next year.

From a newspaper publisher’s perspective, the thought of having Tommy back in elected office has its appeal. He’s always colorful and rarely shied away from a fight, even when he’s waged them with those of us who buy ink by the barrel. When he left the Legislature and began working for Congressman Rick Nolan, I know he had to stuff a sock in it more than once. He was itching to let fly one of his “rants” in response to an editorial or two in the Timberjay over the past couple years. I always enjoyed our debates in the paper, and lots of readers did as well.

Tom likely wouldn’t shy away from doing occasional battle with a fellow commissioner either, though I won’t name names. That would be a worthwhile change in itself, from our current representative on the county board.

That said, no one would ever mistake Christina—the ultimate extrovert— for a shrinking violet either. She started working with the Red Cross several years ago and on one of her first disaster relief stints was sent to New York City following Hurricane Sandy, where she made such an impression that she was quickly put in charge of huge chunks of the Red Cross’s relief efforts. She ended up on the local television so frequently that New Yorkers started to recognize her on the street. So now we like to call her The Master of Disaster.

When I first met Christina, she had lots of ambition and boundless energy, but she didn’t know much about politics. She’s come a long way since, especially since she served as Regional Governor for Soroptimists International, where she represented the entire Upper Midwest for this very active women’s organization. Twice she served as a delegate to various United Nations conferences, and not only traveled around the country, but even overseas, where she’s met thousands of other women working on a long list of critical issues in their own communities. That kind of experience is life-changing.

While Tom likes to chastise those of us with a bit greener sentiments, he also likes to point out, legitimately, that his own lifestyle has been pretty green for years. He lives a simple life with his wife Jean at their rural Pike homestead and, like me, Tommy loves to spend time in his big organic garden. It was Christina, on the other hand, who taught me that Funyuns qualify as a vegetable! Who knew?

Tommy is a dyed-in-the-wool DFLer, with probably more connection to the Farmer-Labor wing than anything, which has always been the closest thing to a political home for me as well. As much as Tommy and I like to argue, we’re both well aware that we agree on about 90 percent of political issues. Trouble is, it’s that ten percent that we always want to fight about.

It’s been suggested that Tommy could change his political stripes if elected commissioner. His former colleague in the Legislature, Rep. David Dill, who can’t resist a friendly jab, says if Tommy wins, he’ll be making so much money between his state pension and his commissioner’s salary that he’ll probably turn Republican, and push for lower taxes on the rich. Then again, Dave Dill got rich and went the other way, so go figure.

Christina, on the other hand, has never strongly identified with any political party, has no real ideology, and is in no danger of becoming wealthy. She’s focused on helping people, which is why she has spent so much time volunteering over the years, sometimes at the expense of her own efforts to make a living.

Tommy is clearly the frontrunner in this race. He’s got high name recognition, a sizable funding advantage, and a deserved reputation as someone who fights for the little guy (he relates, after all). And twenty-six years in the Legislature is certainly valuable experience to bring to the job.

Still, in politics, anything’s possible, and there’s one thing for sure— no one is going to outhustle Christina on the campaign trail. She’s out the door most mornings usually before the sunrise, and doesn’t stop until well into the evening. If nothing else, she’s making Tommy work for it. Who knows, he might even lose a few pounds trying to keep up with her.

And when it comes to politics, we’re supposed to have a choice after all. And we’ve got good choices this time around. Now if I could just figure out which one to vote for.