Two Minnesota House seats up for election
ST. PAUL, Minn. — With the election of two state representatives to higher office Tuesday, Governor Tim Walz will need to schedule special elections for the vacancies. With House membership currently divided 67-67, the elections ae crucial for both Democrats and Republicans. Up for grabs:
> District 47-A: Had been held by Democrat Amanda Hemmingsen-Jaeger, who was elected to the Senate. The district comprises parts of Ramsey and Washington counties, including Maplewood and Woodbury.
> District 64-A: Had been held by Democrat Kaohly Vang Her, who was elected mayor of St. Paul. The district comprises neighborhoods in south St. Paul.
Walz has floated this tentative timeline:
> November 17: When he will announce a schedule.
> November 18: Window opens for candidacy documents to be filed.
> November 25: End of candidacy filing period.
> December 16: Primary elections if necessary to narrow fields.
> January 27: Elections.
Earlier: Democrats retain majority edge in state Senate
Earlier: St. Paul mayorship changes hands
News summary at mid-week: November 5, 2025
GOVERNANCE: SNAP food aid not yet in pipeline
GOVERNANCE: Ellison senses High Court doubts on Trump tariffs
HEALTH: Rug pulled from under you on med insurance?
CONSTRUCTION: Swinging under canopy, you’ll know having arrived
CONSTRUCTION: Riverview Flats: Topped out, cladding to come
COMMERCE: Grain arollin’ into Winona port elevators
COMMERCE: New car dealership with surprise inside
COMMERCE: Winona home sales in October 2025
FAITH: New mega-award over wayward priests
POLITICS: GOP leader challenges Walz for governorship
POLITICS: Democrats retain majority edge in state Senate
POLITICS: Minneapolis mayoral race into second round
POLITICS: St. Paul mayorship changes hands
RIVER: Tourist ferryboat now Lansing bridge alternative
SCHOOLS: School and local funding elections
COLLEGES: Western Tech president plans retirement
CRIME: Murder prosecutors deny errors in Fravel case
CRIME: Third cop in George Floyd slaying leaving prison
College scores
Basketball (women): Northwestern of Iowa 74, Viterbo 63
Soccer (men): Viterbo 4, Governors State 2
Volleyball (women): Gustavus Adolphus 3, Saint Mary’s 0
Volleyball (women): UW-LaCrosse 3, UW-Stout 1
Minnesota prep
Volleyball (girls): Stewartville Tigers 3, Mahtomedi Zephyrs 1
Ellison senses Court qualms on Trump tariffs
ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Minnesota attorney general, Keith Ellison, expressed “cautious optimism” that the U.S. Supreme Court will end President Trump’s global trade war. In oral arguments Wednesday, the Court heard the case filed by Ellison and a coalition of others that Trump exceeded his constitutional authority. Said Ellison: “Most of the justices on the Supreme Court expressed serious concern about the President’s claimed power to tariff the entire world, without any grant of that power from Congress.” Ellison called the President’s extraordinary tariffs “unlawful.” Trump tariffs have created financial turmoil. U.S. agricultural export markets have been decimated, critical imports have disappeared from store shelves, and consumer costs have soared. Hyper-inflation looms, say economists. The Supreme Court, alarmed at what’s happening as well as concerned about constitutional issues, took the case on an unusual, expedited basis. Implications are jaw-dropping. If the Court rules against Trump, an estimated $89 billion that customs agents have collected in recent months will need to be reimbursed to damaged parties — a task so awesome it could take years to unscramble while meanwhile upending a major component of the Trump plan to reorder American society through economic restructuring.
Frey beats Minneapolis “people power” rival
MINNEAPOLIS — The two-term mayor of Minneapolis, Jacob Frey, won a third term in a ranked-choice run-off. Frey, a Democrat, defeated State Representative Omar Feta, who calls himself a democratic socialist. Fetah congratulated Frey but said the “people power” he represents won’t go away. He called for affordable housing, worker rights, police reform.
Frey. Re-election margin 50% to 44%.
Driver hurt in backroad Altoona crash
ALTOONA, Wis — Rescuers cut through metal to pry loose the driver of a car that missed a curve on Otter Creek Road. The driver, whose name was withheld without explanation by Eau Claire County Sheriff Dave Riewestah, was taken to an Eau Claire hospital. The accident was about 4:10 p.m. at Hobbs Road. Deputies said the vehicle was eastbound on Otter Creek Road when driver failed to negotiate a curve, crashed through a grove of small trees and rammed to a halt against a large oak. The driver was intoxicated, deputies said.
Crumpled front end. Driver, alone in car, was trapped by a door that telescoped backward in the impact
Cops: Court order or not, he kept returning
WINONA, Minn. – A Winona man was arrested at an ex-girlfriend’s place for the sixth time since she obtained a restraining order for him to stay away. An officer reported seeing James Miles Kohnen, age 45, coming and going from the girlfriend’s place. The officer asked Kohnen to come out – he didn’t. The officer called for back-up. This was about 3 p.m. in the 300 block of Mankato Avenue. Kohnen came out before a perimeter was established and was taken to jail. The arrest had followed a call to police about possible domestic violence in the area.
Kohnen. Charged with violating court-order forbidding contact.
Four-wheeler crushes Wisconsin outdoorsman
DAKOTA, Minn. — A Wisconsin man was injured seriously when his four-wheeler overturned in the woods in extreme southeast Winona County. James Jeffery Gross, age 63, suffered a crushed chest. Deputies first called for a helicopter to evacuate Gross from the remote site but cancelled and managed to extricate him om foot. Gross was taken to a LaCrosse hospital. This was about 2:20 p.m off Valley View Road southwest of Dakota. Gross is from Waterford, Wisconsin, 200 miles away.
Hunter claims harassment on Rush Creek
WYATVILLE, Minn. — A hunter reported being harassed from afar by shouting as he scouted for deer. When he returned to his truck, he said, he found someone had placed a spike in the tread of a tire. The man told a Winona County deputy that he didn’t see his harasser. This was near the 33000 block of County Road 25 in the Rush Creek drainage, not far from the Houston County line. The state wildlife agency was notified.
Murder prosecutors deny errors in Fravel case
ST. PAUL,, Minn. — In a 50-page legal brief the lead prosecutor in the Adam Favel murder case argued to the state Supreme Court that the Winona man is where he belongs — in prison for life. The brief was a point-by-point response to Fravel claims of judicial and evidentiary errors in his trial for the 2023 murder of Maddi Kingsbury. The response was filed by veteran prosecutor Phillip Prokopowicz, who was hired out of retirement by Winona County for the case. Prokopowicz’s document was co-signed by state Attorney General Keith Ellison cand county Attorney Karin Sonnenman,.
Earlier: Fravel sees flaws in Maddi Kingsbury murder trial
Earlier: Probe restructured in Maddi Kingsbury disappearance
Charge eased for stabbing of Hokah dad
CALEDONIA, Minn. — A Brownsville man who stabbed and critically wounded his father last spring has admitted to the deed in what appears to be a plea-deal in the works. Nicholas McCabe, 24, conceded to a lesser charge of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon — a pair of scissors — outside the family business in Hokah. The original charge was attempted murder. The Houston County prosecutor was persuaded that McCabe is mentally ill. The case remains active under Judge Carmaine M. Sturino.
Emergency, fire crews make 51 calls
WINONA, Minn. – The Fire Department reported 38 emergency medical calls plus 13 fire calls in recent days:
> Tuesday, November 4: 7 medical calls plus 1 fire call.
> Monday, November 3: 7 medical calls plus 3 fire calls.
> Sunday, November 2: 3 medical calls plus 1 fire call.
> Saturday, November 1: 9 medical calls plus 1 fire call.
> Friday, October 31: 7 medical calls plus 2 fire calls.
> Thursday, October 30: 3 medical calls plus 2 fire calls.
> Wednesday, October 29: 2 medical calls plus 3 fire calls.
Earlier: Emergency, fire crews make 49 calls
New car dealership with surprise inside
Finishing touches at Chrysler shop. Opening within 30 days, says owner Andy Puetz. Even before open for customers, the showroom gleams with a 2004 Dodge Viper, whose 8.3-liter V-10 produces 525 pound-feet of torque at 4,200 RPM. The color: No surprise it’s a signature Viper red. “A nice place to put it for now,” says Puetz. Image: Steve Lunde
Democrats retain majority edge in state Senate
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Two special elections for state Senate vacancies left Democrats with their 34-33 advantage.
> District 29: Republican Michael Holmstrom Jr. defeated Louis McNutt. The seat was open because veteran Senator Bruce Anderson, of Buffalo, a Republican, died in July.
> District 47: Democrat Amanda Hemmingsen-Jaeger defeated Dwight Droau. The seat had been open since Nicole Mitchel of Woodbury resigned in July after a burglary conviction.
Earlier: Ticket narrows for Bruce Anderson’s Senate seat
Earlier: Democrats pick would-be Mitchell successor
Minneapolis mayoral race into second round
MINNEAPOLIS — Mayor Jacob Frey led a field of 12 mayoral candidates in a re-election bid, but with only 42% he didn’t win. As a result, the election moves into a second round with a narrowed field to decide whether Frey or second-place Omar Fetah can reach the necessary 50% threshold. In the first round Fetah won 32%. Fateh is a U.S.-born Somali-American. He was elected to the state Senate in 2020 from District 62 in southwest Minneapolis. Like Frey he is Democrat. He calls himself a democratic socialist. The politically moderate Frey was elected mayor in 2017.
St. Paul mayorship changes hands
ST. PAUL, Minn. — A four-term state legislator, Kaohly Vang Her, was elected mayor of St. Paul, defeating incumbent Melvin Carter. The margin, 47% to 45%, made Her the first woman and Asian-American to serve as mayor of Minnesota’s second largest city. Her was born in Laos and was brought to the United States as a refugee when she was 3 years old. Her’s election creates a vacancy from House District 64-A . Her is a Democrat. Presumably Governor Tim Walz will appoint a Democrat to the fill seat pending an election.
Her. Has described herself as “relentless and unflashy.”
School and local funding elections
ST. PAUL, Minn. — School bonding bills to raise taxes, always a tough sell, came in as a mixed bag in new local elections. Among returns as posted by the secretary of state:
> Austin: $54.7 million for building upgrades: Fail 2,278 to 2,551.
> Austin: $12 million for Middle School pool: Failed 2,31 to 1,492.
> Byron: To increase operating revenue to $700 per pupil: Passed 1,358 to 1,200.
> Byron: $2.5 million for learning technology, cybersecurity, safety: Passed 1,328 to 1,256.
> Cannon Falls: To increase operating revenue to $950 per pupil: Passed 1,504 to 679.
> Dodge Center: $6.5 million for tools, staffing, transportation: Passed 450 to 31.
> Goodhue: To increase operating revenue to $800 er pupil: Passed 296 to 290.
> Harmony: To increase operating revenue to $876 per pupil: Passed 719 to 466.
> Owatonna: To increase operating revenue to $700 per pupil: Faied 4,971 to $3,048.
Among Iowa elections:
> Decorah: $1.3 million for municipal library improvements: Passed 1,821 to 633.
> Decorah: $18 million for fire hall, city hall, parks improvements: Failed 1,414 to 1,026.
College scores
Basketball (women): Northwestern of Iowa 74, Viterbo 73
Volleyball (women): Viterbo 3. St. Francis of Illinois 0
Melrose school scare traced to juvenile
MELROSE, Wis. — A juvenile in neighboring Juneau County made the online threats that prompted, Authorities to scour the Melrose-Mindoro school for hidden devices. None were found. Investigators said they traced the threats to a juvenile who also had made earlier threats. Although located in Jackson County, the school also serves townships in LaCrosse and Juneau counties.
Rural school. At a midway point in tri-county area.
Bunch of marijuana found in police stop
WINONA, Minn. — Driving with overdue car plates was only one problem for Javontae Desean Gregory, age 20, of Winona, when police stopped him. The arresting officer reported smelling marijuana, then finding a dozen 3-1/2 gram marijuana dispensers, some empty, some unopened, some with marijuana residue, and also a small bag of marijuana. This was about 8:40 p.m. in the 250 block on the West Side.
Gregory. Charges: Driving with suspended plates, with a suspended driver’s license, and with no proof of insurance, and being under age 21 in possession and transport of marijuana.
Cops: Plainview driver in crash boozed-up
ROCHESTER, Minn. — A Plainview woman was charged with drunken driving after a two-vehicle accident that injured the other driver near Apache Mall. Police said a breath test showed Kyli Rose Staudacher, age 33, with blood-alcohol at 0.22%, almost triple what’s permitted. Staudacher admitted to three glasses of wine, police said. The accident was about 7:30 p.m. The other driver complained of wrist and knee pain and was taken to a hospital.
Breathalyzer: Driver’s blood at 0.21% booze
WINONA, Minn. — A Rochester driver showed multiple signs of impairment when stopped on a complaint she was all over the road. In a breath check Kadie Leigh Johnson, age 40, showed her blood was 0.21% alcohol, more than 2-1/2 times more than allowed to drive. In the traffic stop, near U.S. Highway 61 and Mankato Avenue, she had bloodshot eyes and balance issues, said the arresting officer. She also failed field sobriety tests. This was about 6 p.m.
Johnson. Initial complaint: Erratic driving.
The quiet intensity of autumn’s last hurrah
Behind Holzinger Lodge. Against Winona’s bluffs on a gorgeous albeit slightly brisk afternoon. A jacket kind of day bit not too nippy for a picnic. Image: Nancy Wagner
SNAP food aid not yet in pipeline
Trump is slow-walking $5 billion in overdue November grocery money for needy people. Tikki Brown, the state director for the Children, Youth and Families agency, said the U.S. Department of Agriculture has been vague about a timeline. Trump’s agriculture secretary, Brooke Rollins, said the bookkeeping could take weeks. Even then the November aid will be only half the usual $185. A sinister explanation is that Trump’s calculus is that starved citizens will force Congress to yield and approve his budget, which is skewed to benefit rich people. Said U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota: “The administration should stop playing politics with hunger and use all available resources to ensure Americans can put food on the table.” Meanwhile, SNAP recipients, all low-income and no-income people, are crowding to foodbanks for free subsidence.
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