WASHINGTON — Congressman Jim Hagedorn of southern Minnesota appears to have had the rent on his Mankato campaign office paid by a political donor for seven years at least — and not reported the free deal as a campaign donation. Such would be a violation of federal election laws, the news site Politico reported in a lengthy investigative article. Hagedorn has been in Congress since 2019, representing counties rom Winona and LaCrescent on the Mississippi River all the way to the South Dakota border. He began seeking the seat, once held by father, in 2014. Politico reporter Daniel Newhauser found records that listed a basement suite in a fancy downtown Mankato building as his campaign’s headquarters: Suite 7 of the Brett’s Building at 11 Civic Center Plaza. Hagedorn’s election spending records, however, show no payments for the space. In his article Newhauser quotes explanations from numerous Hagedorn-friendly sources, but their accounts for Suite 007, as some called it, were fuzzy and contradictry. Hagedorn responded indirectly to the Politico report. In an unsigned Facebook post, Hagedorn’s campaign said that Politico had its facts wrong. However, the post implicitly and apparently unintentionally confirmed that Suite 007 had a campaign use.
Earlier: Hagedorn fires aide for overspending
Hagedorn. His First Congressional District spans 280 miles across southern Minnesota. Includes Albert Lea, Austin, Mankato, Marshall, Rochester and Winona.
Fancy address. What’s the truth about his Suite 007?