Former Michigan Legislator Takes On Minnesota Congresswoman

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- A former state legislator from Michigan has become the first Republican to challenge first-term Democratic U.S. Rep. Angie Craig of Minnesota.

The St. Paul Pioneer Press reports that Prior Lake attorney Rick Olson announced in a statement Tuesday that he'll seek the GOP nomination in the 2nd District, which includes southern Twin Cities suburbs and rural areas of southeastern Minnesota. He says the American dream "is now being put at risk in favor of rising calls for Socialism."

Craig won the seat in 2018 by defeating freshman Republican Jason Lewis, whose decision to run for the U.S. Senate cleared the way for other Republicans to challenge Craig.

Olson was elected to the Michigan House in 2010 but served only one term before redistricting made his Ann Arbor-area district heavily Democratic.