An Evening at the Nicollet County Fair
It was a picturesque night at the Nicollet County Fair in St. Peter, Minnesota, on Thursday. The air was filled with the enticing aroma of kettle corn, the excitement of the tractor pull echoed in the background, and a trio of spirited lambs named Frank, Freddie, and Finn were proudly selected to represent the county at the upcoming State Fair later this month.
However, when I engaged fairgoers in conversation about their governor, Tim Walz, the atmosphere shifted from festive to more critical.
“He leans very left,” remarked Steve LeBrun, as he waited for his family in the bustling space between an exhibition hall and a lively beer garden. “I almost feel like we’re becoming a miniature California with some of the stuff that’s going on.”
Nicollet County, characterized by its upside-down triangular shape and located southwest of Minneapolis, forms part of the expansive and predominantly rural region of Minnesota that was once represented by Walz in Congress before his victory in the gubernatorial race of 2018. His success as a camo-hat-wearing, sharpshooting politician in the First Congressional District, which stretches across the southern expanse of the state, plays a significant role in why many Democrats view him as a potential asset for Vice President Kamala Harris, a liberal from the Bay Area, in pivotal Midwestern states and beyond.
Nonetheless, the reality is that he may struggle to secure the support of his former district today.
Last week, following a joint rally with Harris in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, I embarked on a journey back to the First District, traveling approximately 200 miles from Red Wing along the picturesque Mississippi River to the well-attended Farmfest agricultural show in Morgan, just beyond the district boundary, and then on to St. Peter. During my travels, I encountered the world’s largest boot, savored a delectable pork chop sandwich, and gained insight into the challenges Democrats face in such territories.
Walz initially flipped the district by defeating an incumbent candidate by nearly six percentage points in 2006 and secured his re-election two years later with a commanding margin of nearly 30 percentage points. However, as Donald Trump’s influence motivated more rural Republicans to turn out in greater numbers, Walz’s hold on the district weakened, and he narrowly prevailed by less than one percentage point in 2016. Over time, it seemed as though Walz and the First District were drifting apart; he ultimately lost the district, which has undergone slight redistricting changes, during his re-election campaign in 2022.
