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January 20, 2010

District 26 race: Srp touts experience, independence

By Mark Fischenich The Free Press

WASECA — Waseca Mayor Roy Srp freely admits it took him a while to find a political home.

Srp even ran for the state House as a Democrat in 1996. Partly because of his opposition to abortion, he never felt like he was a good fit with the DFL.

He’s supported Republican candidates and caucused with them, too, but believes the party has shifted too far to the right.

“I just could not find myself comfortable in either political party,” said Srp, who joined the Independence Party in 1997.

His attraction to that party, despite the minimal number of volunteers and paltry financial support that comes with the IP endorsement, is his dream of what it would be like to get to the state Capitol free from party entanglements.

Candidates for one of the two big parties get screened by countless special interest groups, which attempt to pin down how the candidate will vote on specific issues if they’re elected, Srp said. In return, they get campaign contributions.

“You no longer can be yourself,” he said of the trade-off that comes with the endorsements and campaign cash. “You become a party-line person and no longer have the flexibility to be yourself.”

Srp expects to be substantially outspent in the District 26 special election, and there will be comparatively little outside assistance for him. The Independence Party’s few well-known members — including former Congressman Tim Penny of Waseca — have tried to help, but Srp is counting on free media and word-of-mouth.

“What I’m getting from voters is that this is a special-enough special election that they’re going to come out and vote,” he said of independents.

Srp has the most government experience of any of the candidates. He’s in his third term as mayor of Waseca and has been on the city council for 16 years. He’s a former Waseca County commissioner and has worked for the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern Railroad for 39 years.

As the IP’s only elected lawmaker, Srp said he would be able to listen to both political parties.

His work in local government has also given him practice in dealing with the budget issues facing the state, just on a smaller scale. The City of Waseca has been facing revenue shortfalls due to state aid cuts and has worked to maintain basic services while holding the line on property tax increases.

In 2010, the Waseca tax levy will drop 1.5 percent, Srp said with evident pride.

“And still being able to plow the streets, keep the lights turned on and provide fire and police protection,” he said.

But the essence of his campaign is offering voters a different course.

“I continue to try to remind people that the reason we’re in the shape we’re in is because we have Democrats and Republicans continuing to point fingers at each other and not getting the work done that needs to get done up there,” he said.

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