By Mark Fischenich
MANKATO — The evidence of intense interest in the presidential race has been overwhelming this year — from huge turnout at primaries and caucuses last winter and spring to record television ratings for the acceptance speeches of Barack Obama, Sarah Palin and John McCain.
But has the interest carried over to other races?
If participation in Tuesday’s primary election is any indication, not really.
Just more than 251,000 Minnesotans voted in the Democratic primary election won by Senate candidate Al Franken, down from more than 318,000 in the DFL Senate primary two years ago. The number of voters in the Republican primary won by Sen. Norm Coleman was down 20,000 from the 163,000 in the same race in 2006.
Only the Independence Party saw an increase, from 10,695 two years ago to 11,341 this year.
Spinning numbers
Both Coleman’s campaign and that of Franken put a heavy spin on the numbers from Tuesday’s vote.
The Coleman campaign noted that Priscilla Lord Faris received more than a third of the vote in the DFL senate race and that she actually beat Franken in some rural counties, including Sibley County.
Of course, primaries in Minnesota — where anyone can vote in any party’s primary — produce some odd results. Coleman, who was running against an accused arsonist who is living in Italy to avoid prosecution, saw nearly 9 percent of the vote in his race go to the fugitive. The alleged arsonist is gaining on Coleman. He won just 6 percent of the vote in his 2002 primary race against Coleman.
Franken’s campaign focused on the raw number of votes the DFLer received Tuesday night — 33,163 more than were cast for Coleman.
Wooing Sarah
The Palin phenomenon continued last week as she drew large crowds in joint appearances with running mate McCain. And at least one south-central Minnesota political activist is hoping the Alaska governor and Republican vice presidential candidate will visit the 1st Congressional District.
Neal Breitbarth, a Fairmont businessman and delegate to the Republican National Convention, didn’t agree with a suggestion that Palin was the star of the convention. But Breitbarth might have been trying to protect McCain’s feelings, because he asked that Palin — not McCain — do a campaign rally in the district with GOP congressional candidate Brian Davis.
Breitbarth said he thinks the district is perfect for Palin and that residents would respond with great enthusiasm, helping Davis in his attempt to unseat freshman Democratic Congressman Tim Walz of Mankato.
“The request is already in,” Breitbarth said after the convention.
NRA endorsing Walz
One organization that was a big supporter of Palin as governor of Alaska is also endorsing Walz. The National Rifle Association announced its endorsement of Walz last week, something the Democrat’s campaign publicized with a pair of press releases.
A retired Army National Guard command sergeant major, Walz has a strong record of backing Second Amendment rights.
Scheduling debates
People who are tired of hearing arguments about pigs, earmarks and other livestock-related campaign spats should start seeing debates among candidates in coming weeks.
The biggest ones are already set. McCain and Obama will square off three times — on Sept. 26, Oct. 7 and Oct. 15. Palin and Sen. Joe Biden, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, will debate on Oct. 2.
In Minnesota races, dates and details are still being negotiated. A Franken staffer visiting Mankato last week said Coleman and Franken have both indicated that three or four debates sounds reasonable, but talks are continuing.
Independence Party nominee Dean Barkley, who will be mostly invisible in terms of campaign advertising compared to his well-financed opponents, has asked for six.
No debates have been finalized in the 1st District either, although the Walz and Davis camps are said to be talking about it.
At least one local legislative debate is locked in. The St. Peter League of Women Voters will host a debate between state Rep. Terry Morrow, DFL-St. Peter, and Republican challenger Mike Bidwell of North Mankato.
That debate is scheduled for 7 p.m. Oct. 23 in the Governors Room of the St. Peter Community Center.
