Matt Little's decisive primary victory sets up high-stakes battle for Minnesota's 2nd Congressional District
Among the big winners in this month's primary was Matt Little, now the DFL nominee in Minnesota's 2nd Congressional District.
The DFL primary in Minnesota's 2nd Congressional District was supposed to be close, but it wasn't. Former Lakeville Mayor and state Sen. Little beat two well-known opponents by double digits.
Little is a progressive and he won decisively over another progressive and a moderate in a district that is known for being evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans. President Trump even won the district in 2016.
"People were clearly angry; this is not the country they want, nothing is working, the economy for most people is not covering childcare costs, healthcare costs, gas, groceries. I also think Metro Surge was a big motivator for people to get out," Little said when asked what he thinks motivated people to vote for him.
The 2nd District stretches from the suburbs of Woodbury to Cottage Grove and Burnsville. It includes all of Scott, Dakota and Le Sueur counties and some of the best farmland in Minnesota. Since 2018, it has been represented by Democratic Rep. Angie Craig, who this year launched an unsuccessful Senate bid. From 2003 to 2019, it was held by Republicans John Kline and, in 2017, Jason Lewis.
Little triumphed in the primary in large part because of his passionate support for Medicare for all. His opponent in November, who ran unopposed in the GOP primary, is state Sen. Eric Pratt, who opposes Medicare for all, arguing it drives up costs.
"I think it's an issue that reaches across all political parties, even if you are a farmer in this district, and there are many, they are paying $2,000, $3,000 a month for their premium and that doesn't even include the deductible," Little said.
Nearly 90,000 people voted in the DFL primary, with 42,000 voting for Little. Forty-three thousand voted in the Republican primary for Pratt. The question for Little now is: can he get a share of those who voted for his primary opponents to vote for him in the general election?
The question for Pratt is whether he gets more Republicans to the polls this November in this race for what was just a few years ago a Republican Congressional seat.
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