The 2014 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota took place in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

on November 4, 2014, to elect Minnesota's eight representatives in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

for two-year terms, one from each of Minnesota's eight congressional districts. Primary elections were held on August 12, 2014. In these elections, Minnesotans elected their oldest U.S. House delegation across the 80 cycles since statehood, at an average age of 58.8 years: Rick Nolan (age 70), Collin Peterson (70), John Kline (67), Betty McCollum (60), Keith Ellison (51), Tom Emmer (53), Tim Walz (50) and Erik Paulsen (49).

Overview

By district

Results of the 2014 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota by district:

District 1

Incumbent Democrat

Tim Walz Timothy James Walz ( ; born April 6, 1964) is an American politician and retired educator. A member of the Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), he has served as the 41st governor of Minnesota since 2019. Born in West Point, Nebraska, Wal ...

, who had represented the district since 2007, ran for re-election. He was re-elected with 58% of the vote in 2012, and the district had a PVI of R+1.

Democratic–Farmer–Labor primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

Results

Republican primary

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

State Representative Mike Benson,

Jim Hagedorn James Lee Hagedorn ( ; August 4, 1962 – February 17, 2022) was an American politician from Minnesota. A Republican, he was the U.S. Representative for from 2019 until his death. The district stretches across southern Minnesota along the border ...

of Blue Earth and U.S. Army veteran Aaron Miller of

Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and has been regarded as among the ...

all sought the nomination to challenge Walz. Hagedorn and Miller had pledged to abide by the Republican endorsement while Benson did not. On April 5, 2014, Aaron Miller won the GOP endorsement. Benson and Hagedorn then withdrew, though Hagedorn re-entered the race on May 18, expressing concerns that Miller was not dedicating enough time to the race.

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, former congressional affairs officer for the

Bureau of Engraving and Printing The Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) is a government agency within the United States Department of the Treasury that designs and produces a variety of security products for the United States government, most notable of which is Federal Re ...

and candidate for this seat in 2010

=Eliminated in primary

= * Aaron Miller, U.S. Army veteran

=Withdrawn

= * Mike Benson, state representative

=Declined

= *

Jeremy Miller Jeremy James Miller (born October 21, 1976) is an American actor. He is known for his portrayal of Ben Seaver on ''Growing Pains'' and its two reunion movies. He also voiced Linus van Pelt in ''Happy New Year, Charlie Brown!''. Career Miller ...

, state senator

Results

General election

Polling

;Tim Walz vs. generic opponent ;Generic Democrat vs. generic Republican

Predictions

Results

District 2

Incumbent Republican John Kline, who had represented the district since 2003, ran for re-election. He was re-elected with 54% of the vote in 2012, and the district had a PVI of R+2. Kline was rumoured to be interested in running for

Governor of Minnesota The governor of Minnesota is the head of government of the U.S. state of Minnesota, leading the state's executive branch. Forty people have been governor of Minnesota, though historically there were also three governors of Minnesota Territory. ...

or the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

. Instead, he announced he would seek re-election.

Republican primary

David Gerson challenged Kline for the Republican nomination but conceded after Kline won the Republican endorsement.

Candidates

=Nominee

= * John Kline, incumbent U.S. Representative

=Withdrawn

= * David Gerson, candidate for this seat in

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

=Declined

= *

Kurt Bills Kurt P. Bills (born January 8, 1970) is an American educator and former politician. He has taught and coached high school since 1994. He served on the Rosemount City Council from 2008 to 2010. He then served in the Minnesota House of Representativ ...

, former state representative and nominee for the U.S. Senate in 2012 * Chris Gerlach, state senator and Dakota County Commissioner *

Pat Garofalo Patrick "Pat" Garofalo (born September 23, 1971) is an American politician and member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. A member of the Republican Party of Minnesota, he represents District 58B, which includes portions of Dakota and G ...

, state representative * Kelby Woodard, state representative

Results

Democratic–Farmer–Labor primary

Mike Obermueller, who lost to Kline in 2012, had decided to run again. He won the DFL endorsement on April 26, 2014. Sona Mehring, the founder of CaringBridge, declared her candidacy, but dropped out of the race three weeks later. Thomas Craft, who volunteered for Obermueller in the 2012 race, declared his candidacy in July 2013 and positioned himself as a fiscally conservative, socially liberal alternative to Kline and Obermueller. Craft ceased his campaign after Obermueller won the DFL endorsement. Eagan quality assurance analyst Paula Overby initially sought the DFL endorsement but withdrew after Obermueller won it and instead became the Independence Party nominee.

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Mike Obermueller, former state representative and nominee for this seat in

=Eliminated in primary

= * Michael Roberts

=Withdrawn

= * Thomas Craft, IT consultant * Sona Mehring, founder of CaringBridge * Paula Overby, quality assurance analyst (ran for the Independence nomination)

Results

Independence primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Paula Overby, quality assurance analyst

Results

General election

The 2014 election in the 2nd district was expected to be one of the tightest congressional races in the country. Kline's district was one of 17 Republican congressional districts to vote for

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...

, and polling data suggested a Democratic challenger could unseat Kline.

Polling

Results

District 3

Incumbent Republican

Erik Paulsen Erik Philip Paulsen (born May 14, 1965) is an American businessman and politician who represented in the United States House of Representatives from 2009 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he served in the Minnesota House of Representati ...

, who had represented the district since , ran for re-election. He was re-elected with 58% of the vote in 2012, and the district had a PVI of R+2. Paulsen considered running for governor or the United States Senate in 2014 before announcing he would seek re-election to the U.S. House instead.

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

Democratic–Farmer–Labor primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Sharon Sund, businesswoman

=Declined

= * James Lawrence, businessman * Don Shelby, former

WCCO-TV WCCO-TV (channel 4) is a television station licensed to Minneapolis, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, broadcasting the CBS network to the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities area. It is owned-and-operated station, owned and operated by th ...

anchor

General election

Polling

Results

District 4

Incumbent Democrat

Betty McCollum Betty Louise McCollum (born July 12, 1954) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for , serving since 2001. She is a member of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL). McCollum's district centers on St. Paul, Minnesota's ...

, who had represented the district since 2001, ran for re-election. She was re-elected with 62% of the vote in 2012, and the district had a PVI of D+11.

Democratic–Farmer–Labor primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Sharna Wahlgren, attorney

Independence primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Dave Thomas, educator, firefighter, and Iraq War veteran

General election

Polling

Results

District 5

Incumbent Democrat Keith Ellison, who had represented the district since 2007, ran for re-election. He was re-elected with 75% of the vote in 2012, and the district had a PVI of D+22.

Democratic–Farmer–Labor primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Keith Ellison, incumbent U.S Representative

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Doug Daggett

Independence primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Lee Bauer

General election

Polling

Results

District 6

Incumbent Republican

Michele Bachmann Michele Marie Bachmann (; née Amble; born April 6, 1956) is an American politician who was the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for from 2007 until 2015. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

, who had represented the district since 2007, ran for re-election. She was re-elected with 51% of the vote in 2012, and the district had a PVI of R+10. Bachmann had won re-election to a fourth term in

, defeating DFL nominee

Jim Graves James Joseph Graves (born September 27, 1953) is an American businessman and founder of the nationwide AmericInn hotel franchise. He was the Democratic Party nominee for the United States House of Representatives in Minnesota's 6th congressional ...

by approximately 1.2 points, despite Mitt Romney receiving 56% of the vote in this district in the

2012 presidential election This national electoral calendar for 2012 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2012 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *3–4 January ...

. Facing a rematch with Graves, Bachmann announced on May 29, 2013, that she would not seek re-election.

Republican primary

Former state representative and 2010 gubernatorial nominee

Tom Emmer Thomas Earl Emmer Jr.Helgeson, Baird, ''Star Tribune'', July 11, 2010. (born March 3, 1961) is an American attorney and politician who has been the U.S. representative for since 2015. The district includes most of the Twin Cities' far northern ...

and Anoka County Commissioner

Rhonda Sivarajah Rhonda Sivarajah (born in Cambridge, Minnesota) is a Minnesota politician, Anoka County Commissioner, former candidate for Lieutenant Governor and former candidate for Minnesota's Sixth District Congressional seat. Sivarajah received a degree in ...

sought the Republican nomination.

Allan Levene Allan Levene (born 1949 or 1950) is a British American information technology specialist. He is the first person ever to run for Congress in multiple states simultaneously. He was planning to simultaneously run for the United States House of Repr ...

, a Kennesaw, Georgia, resident who sought the Republican nomination in four congressional districts in four separate states, including Minnesota, ultimately did not file an affidavit of candidacy.

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, former state representative and nominee for

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

in 2010

=Eliminated in primary

= *

, Anoka County Commissioner

=Withdrawn

= * Phil Krinkie, former state representative *

, resident of

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

running in three other congressional races * John Pederson, state senator

=Declined

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

Polling

Results

Democratic–Farmer–Labor primary

Jim Graves, who had previously said he would run again, said he would continue to run after Bachmann retired. However, on May 31, 2013, Graves announced that he was suspending his campaign. Joe Perske, Mayor of

Sartell, Minnesota Sartell is a city in Benton and Stearns Counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota that straddles the Mississippi River. It is part of the St. Cloud Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 19,351 at the 2020 census, making it St. Clo ...

, was the DFL endorsed candidate and nominee. Judy Adams, a painter and environmental activist, and Jim Read, an author and professor of political science at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University, both withdrew after failing to win the DFL endorsement.

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Joe Perske, Mayor of Sartell

=Withdrawn

= * Judy Adams, environmental activist *

, businessman and nominee for the seat in 2012 * Jim Read, professor at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University

Results

Independence primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * John Denney

Results

General election

Endorsements

Polling

Results

District 7

The 7th district covers almost the entire western side of Minnesota. It is the largest district in the state and one of the largest in the country and includes the cities of Moorhead, Fergus Falls,

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...

and Willmar. Incumbent Democrat

Collin Peterson Collin Clark Peterson (born June 29, 1944) is an American accountant and politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 1991 to 2021. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party, or the DFL. he was chairman of the Ho ...

, who had represented the district since 1991, ran for re-election. He was re-elected with 60% of the vote in 2012 and the district had a PVI of R+6.

Democratic–Farmer–Labor primary

In 2013, Republicans began pressuring Peterson, in hopes of convincing him to retire. His seat was one of only a handful that was represented by a Democrat but was carried by Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney in the 2012 election and was seen as a top pick-up opportunity had Peterson retired. Their tactics included airing television advertisements, hiring a press staffer to give opposition research to reporters, hiring a tracker to follow him around his district and record him, and sending mobile billboards with critical statements on them to drive around his hometown. Peterson responded by saying "They don't have anybody else to go after. It's kind of ridiculous, but whatever." After Republicans spread rumors that Peterson was planning to buy a house in Florida and retire there, he said: "I went from neutral on running again to 90 percent just because of this stupid stuff they're doing. You can't let these people be in charge of anything, in my opinion." On March 17, 2014, Peterson officially announced that he was running for re-election, saying, "I still have a lot of work to do."

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

=Declined

= * Paul Marquart, state representative

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

Torrey Westrom Torrey Westrom (born March 27, 1973) is an American businessman and politician and member of the Minnesota Senate. A Republican, he represents District 12, which includes all or parts of Big Stone, Douglas, Grant, Pope, Stearns, Stevens, Tra ...

, state senator

=Declined

= * Dan Fabian, state representative * Mary Franson, state representative * Bill Ingebrigtsen, state senator * Morrie Lanning, former state representative * Marty Seifert, former Minority Leader of the

Minnesota House of Representatives The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower house of the Legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota. There are 134 members, twice as many as the Minnesota Senate. Floor sessions are held in the north wing of the State Capitol in Saint ...

and candidate for

in 2010 and

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

* Scott Van Binsbergen, businessman

General election

Endorsements

Polling

Predictions

Results

District 8

Incumbent Democrat

Rick Nolan Richard Michael Nolan (born December 17, 1943) is an American politician and businessman who served as the U.S. representative from Minnesota's 8th congressional district from 2013 to 2019. He previously served as the U.S. representative from ...

, who had represented the district since 2013, ran for re-election. He was elected with 54% of the vote in 2012, and the district had a PVI of D+1.

Democratic–Farmer–Labor primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Stewart Mills III, Mills Fleet Farm executive

Green Party

Nominee

* Skip Sandman

General election

Endorsements

Polling

Predictions

Results

References

External links

Elections & Voting - Minnesota Secretary of State

U.S. House elections in Minnesota, 2014
at Ballotpedia
Campaign contributions
at

OpenSecrets OpenSecrets is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that tracks data on campaign finance and lobbying. It was created from a merger of the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) and the National Institute on Money in Politics (NIMP) ...

{{2014 United States elections