| Election Name: | 2010 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota |
| Country: | Minnesota |
| Flag Image: | File:Flag of Minnesota (1983-2024).svg |
| Flag Year: | 1983 |
| Type: | legislative |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota |
| Previous Year: | 2008 |
| Next Election: | 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota |
| Next Year: | 2012 |
| Seats For Election: | All 8 Minnesota seats to the United States House of Representatives |
| Party1: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
| Last Election1: | |
| Seats Before1: | 5 |
| Seats1: | 4 |
| Seat Change1: | 1 |
| Popular Vote1: | 1,002,026 |
| Percentage1: | 47.93% |
| Swing1: | 9.60% |
| Party2: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
| Seats Before2: | 3 |
| Seats2: | 4 |
| Seat Change2: | 1 |
| Popular Vote2: | 970,741 |
| Percentage2: | 46.43% |
| Swing2: | 8.29% |
The 2010 Minnesota U.S. House of Representatives elections took place on November 2, 2010. All eight congressional seats in the state's delegation were contested. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; those elected served in the 112th United States Congress from January 3, 2011, until January 3, 2013.
The 2010 Minnesota gubernatorial, 2010 Minnesota House elections and 2010 Minnesota Senate elections occurred on the same date, as well as many local elections and ballot initiatives.
The 111th congressional delegation from the U.S. state of Minnesota had five Democratic Farmer Labor Party members (DFLers) and 3 Republicans. All the incumbents were reelected except District 8's Jim Oberstar, who was defeated in his bid for a 19th term. This left Minnesota with an equal number of Democratic and Republican representatives.
The table below shows the total number and percentage of votes, as well as the number of seats gained and lost by each political party in the election for the United States House of Representatives in Minnesota.
| Party | Candidates | Votes | Seats | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | +/– | % | ||||||
| Democratic-Farmer-Labor | 8 | 1,002,026 | 47.93 | 4 | 1 | 50.00 | ||
| Republican | 8 | 970,741 | 46.43 | 4 | 1 | 50.00 | ||
| Independence | 7 | 84,816 | 4.05 | 0 | 0.0 | |||
| Independent | 5 | 23,387 | 1.12 | 0 | 0.0 | |||
| Constitution | 1 | 2,492 | 0.11 | 0 | 0.0 | |||
| Write-in | 8 | 1,639 | 0.08 | 0 | 0.0 | |||
| Total | 37 | 2,090,591 | 100.0 | 8 | 100.0 | |||
Results of the 2010 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota by district:[1]
| scope=col rowspan=3 | District | scope=col colspan=2 | Democratic | scope=col colspan=2 | Republican | scope=col colspan=2 rowspan=2 | Others | scope=col colspan=2 rowspan=2 | Total | scope=col rowspan=3 | Result | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| scope=col colspan=2 style="background:" | ! | scope=col colspan=2 style="background:" | |||||||||||||
| scope=col data-sort-type="number" | Votes ! | scope=col data-sort-type="number" | % ! | scope=col data-sort-type="number" | Votes ! | scope=col data-sort-type="number" | % ! | scope=col data-sort-type="number" | Votes ! | scope=col data-sort-type="number" | % ! | scope=col data-sort-type="number" | Votes ! | scope=col data-sort-type="number" | % |
| 122,365 | 49.34% | 109,242 | 44.05% | 16,398 | 6.61% | 248,005 | 100.0% | Democratic hold | |||||||
| 104,809 | 36.59% | 181,341 | 63.30% | 303 | 0.11% | 286,453 | 100.0% | Republican hold | |||||||
| 100,240 | 36.57% | 161,177 | 58.80% | 12,675 | 4.62% | 274,092 | 100.0% | Republican hold | |||||||
| 136,746 | 59.09% | 80,141 | 34.63% | 14,539 | 6.28% | 231,426 | 100.0% | Democratic hold | |||||||
| 154,833 | 67.69% | 55,222 | 24.14% | 18,691 | 8.17% | 228,746 | 100.0% | Democratic hold | |||||||
| 120,846 | 39.79% | 159,476 | 52.51% | 23,369 | 7.70% | 303,691 | 100.0% | Republican hold | |||||||
| 133,096 | 55.20% | 90,652 | 37.60% | 17,349 | 7.20% | 241,097 | 100.0% | Democratic hold | |||||||
| District 8 | 129,091 | 46.59% | 133,490 | 48.18% | 14,500 | 5.23% | 277,081 | 100.0% | Republican gain | ||||||
| Total | 1,002,026 | 47.93% | 970,741 | 46.43% | 117,824 | 5.64% | 2,090,591 | 100.0% |
| Election Name: | 2010 Minnesota's 1st congressional district election |
| Country: | Minnesota |
| Flag Year: | 1983 |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 1 |
| Previous Year: | 2008 |
| Next Election: | 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 1 |
| Next Year: | 2012 |
| Image1: | File:Tim Walz, official portrait, 110th Congress (cropped).jpg |
| Nominee1: | Tim Walz |
| Party1: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
| Popular Vote1: | 122,365 |
| Percentage1: | 49.3% |
| Nominee2: | Randy Demmer |
| Party2: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
| Popular Vote2: | 109,242 |
| Percentage2: | 44.1% |
| Image3: | File:3x4.svg |
| Nominee3: | Steve Wilson |
| Party3: | Independence Party of Minnesota |
| Popular Vote3: | 13,242 |
| Percentage3: | 5.3% |
| U.S. Representative | |
| Before Election: | Tim Walz |
| Before Party: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
| After Election: | Tim Walz |
| After Party: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
See also: Minnesota's 1st congressional district. Incumbent Democrat Tim Walz, who had represented the district since 2007, ran for reelection.[2] He was reelected with 62.5% of the vote in 2008. The district had a PVI of R+1.
No primary elections were held in the 1st congressional district in 2010.[3]
Shortly after launching his campaign, Quist attracted controversy for a speech he gave at the Wabasha County Republicans' December 7 Christmas Party, in which he said: "Our country is being destroyed. Every generation has had to fight the fight for freedom… Terrorism? Yes. That's not the big battle. The big battle is in D.C. with the radicals. They aren't liberals. They are radicals. Obama, Pelosi, Walz: they’re not liberals, they're radicals. They are destroying our country."[11] He also spoke against the Affordable Health Care for America Act, saying: "This is the most insidious, evil piece of legislation I have ever seen in my life… Every one of us has to be totally committed to killing this travesty… I have to kill this bill."
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Tim Walz (DFL) | Randy Demmer (R) | Steven Wilson (IP) | Lars Johnson (I) | Undecided | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Survey USA[13] | October 22–26, 2010 | 558 (LV) | ±4.2% | align=center | 50% | 41% | 4% | 2% | 4% | |
| Grove Insight (D)[14] | October 18–19, 2010 | 400 (LV) | ±4.9% | align=center | 50% | 34% | scope=col colspan=2 align=center | 5% | 13% | |
| Survey USA[15] | October 12–14, 2010 | 584 (LV) | ±4.1% | align=center | 47% | 42% | 4% | 2% | 5% |
| Source | Ranking | As of | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| align=left | The Cook Political Report[16] | November 1, 2010 | ||
| align=left | Rothenberg[17] | November 1, 2010 | ||
| align=left | Sabato's Crystal Ball[18] | November 1, 2010 | ||
| RCP[19] | November 1, 2010 | |||
| align=left | CQ Politics[20] | October 28, 2010 | ||
| align=left | New York Times[21] | November 1, 2010 | ||
| align=left | FiveThirtyEight | November 1, 2010 |
Walz won the general election on November 2 with 49% of the vote to Demmer's 44%.[22]
External links
| Election Name: | 2010 Minnesota's 2nd congressional district election |
| Country: | Minnesota |
| Flag Year: | 1983 |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 2 |
| Previous Year: | 2008 |
| Next Election: | 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 2 |
| Next Year: | 2012 |
| Image1: | File:Johnkline.jpg |
| Nominee1: | John Kline |
| Party1: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
| Popular Vote1: | 181,341 |
| Percentage1: | 63.3% |
| Nominee2: | Shelley Madore |
| Party2: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
| Popular Vote2: | 104,809 |
| Percentage2: | 36.6% |
| U.S. Representative | |
| Before Election: | John Kline |
| Before Party: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
| After Election: | John Kline |
| After Party: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
See also: Minnesota's 2nd congressional district. Incumbent Republican John Kline, who had represented the district since 2003, ran for reelection. He was reelected with 57.3% of the vote in 2008. The district had a PVI of R+4.
Despite losing the DFL endorsement to Powers, Madore remained in the race, much to the anger of a number of party loyalists.[24] She was boosted by questions about Powers's résumé.[25]
CQ Politics rated the seat "Safe Republican".
Kline won the general election on November 2, 63% to 37%.
External links
| Election Name: | 2010 Minnesota's 3rd congressional district election |
| Country: | Minnesota |
| Flag Year: | 1983 |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 3 |
| Previous Year: | 2008 |
| Next Election: | 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 3 |
| Next Year: | 2012 |
| Image1: | File:Erik Paulsen, official portrait, 111th Congress (cropped).jpg |
| Nominee1: | Erik Paulsen |
| Party1: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
| Popular Vote1: | 161,177 |
| Percentage1: | 58.8% |
| Nominee2: | Jim Meffert |
| Party2: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
| Popular Vote2: | 100,240 |
| Percentage2: | 36.6% |
| U.S. Representative | |
| Before Election: | Erik Paulsen |
| Before Party: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
| After Election: | Erik Paulsen |
| After Party: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
See also: Minnesota's 3rd congressional district. Incumbent Republican Erik Paulsen, who had represented the district since 2009, ran for reelection. He was elected with 48.5% of the vote in 2008. The district had a PVI of Even.
No primary elections were held in the 3rd congressional district in 2010.[3]
Meffert lacked the funds to afford television advertising, but he gained some name recognition from the Paulsen campaign's attack ads.[30] [31] [32] Political analyst David Schultz said, "Given how little money that Meffert has, you would've thought Paulsen would've just ignored Meffert completely and just run a positive campaign." Meffert responded to the attack: "It's the kind of thing that makes people cynical about politics and politicians when you hide behind a big bank account and you throw up an ad that's designed to tear down your opponent."[33] After the Paulsen campaign included a misleading graph in a mailing, Meffert filed an ethics complaint against Paulsen.[34] [35]
CQ Politics rated the seat "Safe Republican".
Paulsen won the general election on November 2, 59% to 37%.
External links
| Election Name: | 2010 Minnesota's 4th congressional district election |
| Country: | Minnesota |
| Flag Year: | 1983 |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 4 |
| Previous Year: | 2008 |
| Next Election: | 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 4 |
| Next Year: | 2012 |
| Image1: | File:Betty McCollum, official portrait, 111th Congress (cropped).jpg |
| Nominee1: | Betty McCollum |
| Party1: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
| Popular Vote1: | 136,746 |
| Percentage1: | 59.1% |
| Nominee2: | Teresa Collett |
| Party2: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
| Popular Vote2: | 80,141 |
| Percentage2: | 34.6% |
| Image3: | File:Steve Carlson (2012) (cropped).jpg |
| Nominee3: | Steve Carlson |
| Party3: | Independence Party of Minnesota |
| Popular Vote3: | 14,207 |
| Percentage3: | 6.1% |
| U.S. Representative | |
| Before Election: | Betty McCollum |
| Before Party: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
| After Election: | Betty McCollum |
| After Party: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
See also: Minnesota's 4th congressional district. Incumbent Betty McCollum, who had represented the district since 2001, ran for reelection. She was reelected with 68.4% of the vote in 2008. The district had a PVI of D+13.
CQ Politics rated the seat "Safe Democratic".
McCollum won the general election on November 2, 59% to 35%.
External links
| Election Name: | 2010 Minnesota's 5th congressional district election |
| Country: | Minnesota |
| Flag Year: | 1983 |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 5 |
| Previous Year: | 2008 |
| Next Election: | 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 5 |
| Next Year: | 2012 |
| Image1: | File:Keith Ellison, official portrait, 111th Congress (cropped).jpg |
| Nominee1: | Keith Ellison |
| Party1: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
| Popular Vote1: | 154,833 |
| Percentage1: | 67.7% |
| Nominee2: | Joel Demos |
| Party2: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
| Popular Vote2: | 55,222 |
| Percentage2: | 24.1% |
| Map Size: | 200px |
| U.S. Representative | |
| Before Election: | Keith Ellison |
| Before Party: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
| After Election: | Keith Ellison |
| After Party: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
See also: Minnesota's 5th congressional district. Incumbent Keith Ellison, who had represented the district since 2007, ran for reelection. Ellison is the first Muslim to be elected to Congress. He was reelected with 67.7% of the vote in 2008. The district had a PVI of D+23.
CQ Politics rated the seat "Safe Democratic".
Ellison won the general election on November 2, 68% to 24%.
External links
| Election Name: | 2010 Minnesota's 6th congressional district election |
| Country: | Minnesota |
| Flag Year: | 1983 |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 6 |
| Previous Year: | 2008 |
| Next Election: | 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 6 |
| Next Year: | 2012 |
| Image1: | File:Michele Bachmann, official portrait, 111th Congress (cropped).jpg |
| Nominee1: | Michele Bachmann |
| Party1: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
| Popular Vote1: | 159,476 |
| Percentage1: | 52.5% |
| Nominee2: | Tarryl Clark |
| Party2: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
| Popular Vote2: | 120,846 |
| Percentage2: | 39.8% |
| Image3: | File:3x4.svg |
| Nominee3: | Bob Anderson |
| Party3: | Independence Party of Minnesota |
| Popular Vote3: | 17,698 |
| Percentage3: | 5.8% |
| U.S. Representative | |
| Before Election: | Michele Bachmann |
| Before Party: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
| After Election: | Michele Bachmann |
| After Party: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
See also: Minnesota's 6th congressional district. Incumbent Republican Michele Bachmann, who had represented the district since 2007, ran for reelection.[37] [38] She was reelected with 46.4% of the vote in 2008. The district had a PVI of R+7.
The DFL endorsed Tarryl Clark, the state senate assistant majority leader. She was Bachmann's sole Democratic challenger, Maureen Reed having dropped out of the race in June. A physician and former University of Minnesota regent chair, Reed threw her support behind Clark, saying she felt "it is time for the DFL to unify behind one candidate in this race".[39] [40] [41]
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Michele Bachmann (R) | Tarryl Clark (DFL) | Bob Anderson (IP) | Aubrey Immelsman (I) | Undecided | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Survey USA[43] | September 15, 2010 | 582 (LV) | ±4.1% | align=center | 49% | 40% | 6% | 1% | 4% | |
| Survey USA[44] | July 9–11, 2010 | 565 (LV) | ±4.2% | align=center | 48% | 39% | 6% | 2% | 5% | |
| Public Policy Polling[45] | December 17–20, 2009 | 719 (RV) | ±3.7% | align=center | 55% | 37% | – | – | 8% |
Bachmann vs. Reed
| Source | Ranking | As of | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| align=left | The Cook Political Report | November 1, 2010 | ||
| align=left | Rothenberg | November 1, 2010 | ||
| align=left | Sabato's Crystal Ball | November 1, 2010 | ||
| RCP | November 1, 2010 | |||
| align=left | CQ Politics | October 28, 2010 | ||
| align=left | New York Times | November 1, 2010 | ||
| align=left | FiveThirtyEight | November 1, 2010 |
Bachmann won the general election on November 2, 52% to 38%.[46] [47]
External links
| Election Name: | 2010 Minnesota's 7th congressional district election |
| Country: | Minnesota |
| Flag Year: | 1983 |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 7 |
| Previous Year: | 2008 |
| Next Election: | 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 7 |
| Next Year: | 2012 |
| Image1: | File:Collin Peterson, official portrait, 109th Congress (cropped).jpg |
| Nominee1: | Collin Peterson |
| Party1: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
| Popular Vote1: | 133,096 |
| Percentage1: | 55.2% |
| Nominee2: | Lee Byberg |
| Party2: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
| Popular Vote2: | 90,652 |
| Percentage2: | 37.6% |
| Map Size: | 150px |
| U.S. Representative | |
| Before Election: | Collin Peterson |
| Before Party: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
| After Election: | Collin Peterson |
| After Party: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
See also: Minnesota's 7th congressional district. Incumbent Collin Peterson, who had represented the district since 1991, ran for reelection. He was reelected with 72.2% of the vote in 2008. The district had a PVI of R+5.
| Source | Ranking | As of | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| align=left | The Cook Political Report | November 1, 2010 | ||
| align=left | Rothenberg | November 1, 2010 | ||
| align=left | Sabato's Crystal Ball | November 1, 2010 | ||
| RCP | November 1, 2010 | |||
| align=left | CQ Politics | October 28, 2010 | ||
| align=left | New York Times | November 1, 2010 | ||
| align=left | FiveThirtyEight | November 1, 2010 |
Peterson won the general election on November 2, 55% to 38%.
External links
| Election Name: | 2010 Minnesota's 8th congressional district election |
| Country: | Minnesota |
| Flag Year: | 1983 |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 8 |
| Previous Year: | 2008 |
| Next Election: | 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota#District 8 |
| Next Year: | 2012 |
| Image1: | File:Chip Cravaack, official portrait, 112th Congress (cropped).jpg |
| Nominee1: | Chip Cravaack |
| Party1: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
| Popular Vote1: | 133,490 |
| Percentage1: | 48.2% |
| Nominee2: | Jim Oberstar |
| Party2: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
| Popular Vote2: | 129,091 |
| Percentage2: | 46.6% |
| U.S. Representative | |
| Before Election: | Jim Oberstar |
| Before Party: | Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party |
| After Election: | Chip Cravaack |
| After Party: | Republican Party of Minnesota |
See also: Minnesota's 8th congressional district. Incumbent Jim Oberstar, who had represented the district since 1975, ran for reelection. He was reelected with 67.7% of the vote in 2008. The district had a PVI of D+3.
Cravaack entered the race as the underdog. He was a political novice and Democrats had held the 8th district since 1947. Oberstar was the longest-serving congressman in Minnesota history and had never received less than 59% of the vote.[55]
Cravaack campaigned on a standard Republican platform of free-market principles and government spending cuts[56] while attacking Oberstar's vote for the ACA.[55] [57]
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Jim Oberstar (DFL) | Chip Cravaack (R) | George Burton (C) | Undecided | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Survey USA[58] | October 25–28, 2010 | 665 (LV) | ±3.9% | align=center | 47% | 46% | 3% | 4% | |
| Public Opinion Strategies (R)[59] | September 28–30, 2010 | 300 (LV) | ±5.7% | align=center | 45% | 42% | – | 13% |
| Source | Ranking | As of | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| align=left | The Cook Political Report | November 1, 2010 | ||
| align=left | Rothenberg | November 1, 2010 | ||
| align=left | Sabato's Crystal Ball | November 1, 2010 | ||
| RCP | November 1, 2010 | |||
| align=left | CQ Politics | October 28, 2010 | ||
| align=left | New York Times | November 1, 2010 | ||
| align=left | FiveThirtyEight | November 1, 2010 |
Cravaack defeated Oberstar, 48% to 47%.[60]
External links