Matt Pelikan Seeks To Make The AG's Office More Progressive
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The August 2018 primary election is one of the most volatile in memory. Voters will be making decisions in a number of critical races.
And the candidate who triggered much of the uncertainty is someone you may have never heard of.
Minneapolis attorney Matt Pelikan stunned the Minnesota political world in June when he upset veteran Attorney General Lori Swanson by winning the DFL endorsement for attorney general.
That prompted Swanson to jump out of the attorney general race and to run for governor.
Swanson's departure created a stampede of prominent candidates to jump into the attorney general's race, including Rep. Keith Ellison.
Ellison's decision to give up his seat to run for attorney general in turn prompted a number of prominent candidates to run for his congressional seat.
Pelikan is now in a tight primary battle to win the DFL nomination.
His most prominent opponent is Elision, who brought Sen. Bernie Sanders to Minnesota to campaign for him.
Pelikan, who was a guest on WCCO Sunday Morning, remains optimistic about his chances to win the Aug. 14 primary.
"People are ready for a new generation of progressive leaders," he said. "We have seen everywhere from Minneapolis to New York City that this cycle is about new ideas and saying the establishment has not been getting us the results we need."
Other prominent DFL candidates running for attorney general are former Ramsey County Attorney Tom Foley, state Rep. Debra Hilstrom, and former Commerce Commissioner Mike Rothman.
The GOP-endorsed candidate for attorney general is Doug Wardlow.
