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Minnesota voters approve extending lottery funds to environment
Voters first approved the constitutional amendment back in 1988.
ST PAUL, Minn. — Voters in Minnesota overwhelmingly said yes to a constitutional amendment that renews the use of proceeds from the Minnesota Lottery for environmental projects and causes across the state.
The Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund was up for renewal in the 2024 election. About 77.5% of constituents voted yes, renewing the source of funding until 2050 and additionally, increasing the dollars that can be spent annually from this fund, according to the Associated Press.
With 99% of the vote reported, only 16.2% of voters said no to the amendment.
Minnesota voters first approved the constitutional amendment in 1988, opting to dedicate a portion of lottery proceeds to the fund. Each year since the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources has worked to help disperse that funding for projects that reflect Minnesota’s love of the outdoors and preservation of the environment.
Those projects have included research on drinking water, wastewater and air quality. They have also helped fund new parks, trails and campsites; supported loon and bison populations; and fostered outdoor activities. Lottery proceeds have provided more than $1 billion since 1988.
Baldwin, a two-term incumbent, declared victory early Wednesday over Hovde, a multimillionaire businessman. The AP has not declared a winner.
MADISON, Wisconsin — Wisconsin’s hotly contested race for U.S. Senate between Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin and Republican Eric Hovde, who was backed by President-elect Donald Trump, appeared to be close enough early Wednesday for a recount to be requested.
Baldwin, a two-term incumbent, declared victory early Wednesday over Hovde, a multimillionaire businessman who poured millions of his own money into the campaign. The Associated Press has not called the race.
Baldwin declared victory after the tally of absentee ballots from Milwaukee was reported around 4:30 a.m. Wednesday. Baldwin had a lead of 0.9% based on the unofficial results, just within the 1% margin that would allow for Hovde to request a recount if he pays for it.
“The people of Wisconsin have chosen someone who always puts Wisconsin first, someone who shows up, listens, and works with everyone to get the job done,” Baldwin said in a statement. “And they rejected the billionaires and the special interests who want to come to our state, spread hate and division, and buy their way into power.”
On Tuesday night, Hovde blamed the tight race on America First candidate Thomas Leager, a far-right candidate who was propped up by Democratic operatives and donors to run as a conservative.
“We’re watching the final precinct results come in. We’re certainly disappointed that the Democrats’ effort to siphon votes with a fraudulent candidate had a significant impact on the race, with those votes making up more than the entire margin of the race right now,” said Hovde in a statement released Wednesday morning. “We will continue to monitor returns and make sure that every vote is counted.”
Leager ran a distant fourth, but got more votes than the margin between Baldwin and Hovde.
Baldwin ran ahead of Vice President Kamala Harris, who lost Wisconsin to Republican Donald Trump by less than a percentage point. That marks the fifth time in the past seven presidential elections that a presidential election in Wisconsin has been decided by less than a point.
A Baldwin win would come despite Republicans seizing control of the U.S. Senate by flipping Democratic-held seats in Ohio and West Virginia.
Democrats were hoping for a Baldwin win to prevent Republicans from holding both of Wisconsin’s Senate seats.
Although Baldwin’s voting record is liberal, she emphasized bipartisanship throughout her campaign. She became the first statewide Democratic candidate in more than 20 years to win an endorsement from the Wisconsin Farm Bureau, the state’s largest farm organization.
Hovde tried to portray Baldwin as an out-of-touch liberal career politician who hadn’t done enough to combat inflation, illegal immigration and crime.
Baldwin won her first Senate race in 2012, against popular former Republican Gov. Tommy Thompson, by almost 6 percentage points. Hovde lost to Thompson in that year’s primary. Baldwin won reelection in 2018 by nearly 11 points.
DFL Sen. Kelly Morrison resigned her seat to run for Congress, prompting a special election.
MINNETONKA, Minn — The stakes were high in west metro suburbs going into this election. Voters in Senate District 45 had a special election to determine the balance of power in St. Paul.
Voters in the district chose DFLer Ann Johnson Stewart with 52.43%% of the vote, over Republican Kathleen Fowke, according to the Minnesota Secretary of State.
This was the only Senate District with an election Tuesday. The other 66 districts won’t be in play until 2026, because senators currently serving were elected to four-year terms back in 2022. But DFL Sen. Kelly Morrison resigned her seat to run for Congress, prompting a special election to replace Morrison in SD45 the same day as the November 5 General Election.
Morrison’s departure left the chamber deadlocked at 33 Democrats and 33 Republicans. Now, when lawmakers come back for the 2025 Session, the DFL will have a one-seat advantage.
Johnson Stewart is a civil engineer who served a two-year term in 2021-2022 Legislature. As a result of redistricting in 2022, she ended up in the same district as Morrison, who won the DFL endorsement in SD45.
She told KARE 11 in an October interview she wants to solve the water supply and wastewater treatment issues in the district, which wraps around Lake Minnetonka.
Steve Simon visited a polling location at the Lakeville Water Treatment Facility on Tuesday morning.
LAKEVILLE, Minn. — Leading up to Election Day, Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon said he’s hopeful for two things: high voter turnout and low drama. Speaking from a polling place in Lakeville Tuesday morning, Simon said that’s exactly what he’s seeing at polling locations across the state.
When polls opened at 7 a.m. on Election Day, Simon said more than 1.2 Minnesotans had already voted absentee and by mail.
“It’s a good day to be a Minnesotan,” he said. “We were number one in America for three out of the last four elections including the last presidential election, and we want to get back to number one, back to that top spot, today.”
As of Tuesday morning, the Secretary of State’s office said about 128,000 absentee ballots had not yet been returned. Simon urged anyone who has not returned their absentee ballot to deliver it in person or have someone they trust to deliver it on their behalf.
Dakota County Director of Elections Michelle Blue said roughly 40% of voters in the county voted early.
Still, the line to vote at the Lakeville Water Treatment Facility was constant and steady Tuesday morning. Despite a soggy start to Election Day, many people stepped outside to cast their ballots — some for the very first time.
“This is my first time voting, so it’s really exciting,” St. Olaf College student Rylan Nakamura said. “We have a polling place at St. Olaf College, so it made it really accessible and easy, and it was really exciting.”
St. Olaf is a campus well-known for encouraging civic engagement. On Oct. 28, the Secretary of State recognized the school for having the highest voter turnout of any college in Minnesota during the previous election.
Simon reiterated that Minnesota’s election results should be readily available by Wednesday morning. However, that is likely not the case for several other states.
“It’s no surprise that in those battleground states, they will be counting into tomorrow and the next day and maybe the next day,” Simon said. “It’s not a sign that someone did anything wrong. It’s not a sign that there’s any unlawful activity. It’s a sign that they’re following their state laws, and I just want to condition everyone and talk about that in terms of expectations.”
