Update from Wadena, MN
turning the page
Looking ahead to 2026.
Cheers to the New Year
Sometimes you don’t need to read between the lines, you simply need to turn the page. I believe this is one of those times. While there are plenty of reasons to be extremely concerned right now, or downright appalled, we are committed to being the light in an otherwise dark political landscape.
As 2025 comes to a close, we are humbled & honored by all the support we’ve gotten since announcing nearly 10 months ago. Turning the page to 2026, we are now 308 days away from the midterms. When we started, this entire campaign was built on hope, and today I’m more hopeful than I’ve ever been that we can defeat our opponent in 2026. To do that, we need to focus our energy on building a winning strategy to flip Minnesota’s 7th Congressional District. That means looking forward while executing the tasks at hand, and the team we are building is prepared to do exactly that. This campaign’s intention is to dedicate every single one of those 308 days to paving a different path to a different outcome because we believe we can do better.
The Dude Abides
Got a new sweater for Christmas. A fitting tribute to The Big Lebowski, one of my favorite films.
My new Christmas sweater. The Dude abides.
Upcoming Visits
Unlike the Dude, I struggle with sitting still, mightily. Holiday breaks are great and all, but an object in motion wants to stay in motion, and I’m itchin’ to get back out on the road. The good news is our Field Team has done a great job lining up visits for the first half of January. Here’s what we currently have confirmed. Check next week’s newsletter for more updates – we have more events in the works, just fine tunin’ the details.
Gonna be back on the road after the new year. Hope to see you soon!
Jan. 1st – Happy New Year!
Jan. 5th – Pope County DFL meet-n-greet – Starbuck
Jan. 8th – DFL Rural Caucus Annual meeting – Virtual
Jan. 10th – DFL Working Families Picnic – Detroit Lakes
Jan. 12th – Redwood County DFL Greet-Eat-Meet – Lamberton
Jan. 13th – Sibley County DFL meeting – Gaylord
Jan. 15th – SD9 Hotdish Potluck – Elbow Lake
Feb. 3rd – Caucus for Erik – District wide
Working Class Shout-out
Shout-out to everyone who worked Christmas Day and all those who will work New Year’s Day. While many of us are able to enjoy some time off, others keep the lights on and the trains running on time, so to speak – nurses, doctors, police officers, EMS, fire fighters, truckers, farmers, gas station/convenience store staff, members of the military, and clergy to name a few. The working class gets stuff done. If you’re someone who works these holidays, please know you are appreciated.
Got More Ink!
The Morrison County Record covered our fundraiser/meet-n-greet in Little Falls back on Dec. 17th. Find the full article in their print version or online here if you aren’t local.
Coverage of our fundraiser/meet-n-greet in Little Falls on Dec. 17th.
Actions You Can Take
Caucuses are coming!
There’s only 36 days until precinct caucuses here in Minnesota. Please mark Feb. 3rd, 2026, on your calendars. If we are to be on the ballot come November, it is imperative folks show up for the first step in the endorsement process. You can commit to caucus for our campaign here. After the precinct caucuses will come County/Senate District Conventions. Delegates will be chosen there to attend the 7th Congressional District Convention which is April 25th. Over the coming weeks, we will do our best to educate & inform about this process. Specific caucus locations should be announced in mid January. You can go to www.dfl.org/caucus to learn more now. Thanks for all your support.
Commit to Caucus for Erik here!
Invest in the change you seek
We’ve met our end of year fundraising goal of $150k – thank you, thank you, thank you! We’re proud to say 100% of these donations are from individual people who have decided to invest in the change they want to see. If you have already donated, thank you. If you haven’t, please consider making an investment today.
Thank you for all the support & keep up the good work!
Thanks to our generous donors, we have raised over $154,000! Our campaign relies on donations from folks like you. If you have already donated, THANK YOU! If you have set up a recurring donation, even better. If you would like to host a private party fundraiser, click here: https://secure.ngpvan.com/SKQtMANaY0W8nGqHcpukXA2
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