barrycasselman

Wednesday, December 31, 2025

THE PRAIRIE EDITOR: Assessing 2025

There have been dramatic changes in virtually all aspects

of public life from the previous year when so many

political and economic conditions seemed negative and

incoherent.

The year 2024 concluded and 2025 began with a new

president and administration in Washington, DC.

President Trump has issued a very large number

of executive orders, some of which have been halted by

lower federal courts. Many, but not all of these actions

have reversed by the U.S. Supreme Court, and others

are pending.

The result has been to cancel many previous executive

orders, policies and programs of Trump’s predecessor

Joe Biden.

The year has ended with allegations of widespread

fraud in public programs in Minnesota, and this has

become the number one news story in the nation, and’

has been circulated all over the world. New fraud

disclosures continue to be made.

The dimensions of this fraud are still unknown, although

some national and state figures have contended that

it involves billions of dollars. State official are saying

these numbers are exaggerated, but several federal

agencies, including the FBI, Homeland Security, and

the Small Business Agency have each sent investigators

to the state. This is likely to be a major story next year

as well.

It was an off-year for most state and national elections,

but there were local elections. Minneapolis and St. Paul

held elections for mayor. Incumbent DFL Mayor Jacob

Frey faced a serious challenge from three socialist

challengers, but survived to win another term.

Considered much less vulnerable, incumbent DFL St

Paul Mayor Melvin Carter, however, suffered an upset

defeat by Kaohly Her, a DFL state legislator who

entered the race very late, and was given little chance

by most observers to win. Both Frey and Her

are more moderate DFlers.

Elsewhere, Democrats won two governorships in

New Jersey and Virginia as well as and many city

elections across the country.

This year also had record number of retirements

from Congress and a large number leaving the

U.S. Senate. This will likely make the 2026 national

mid-term elections quite competitive, and although

Republicans are likely to keep control of the Senate,

many Democrats are optimistic they can take back

control of the House which the GOP now has by a

very slim margin.

With key Supreme Court decisions pending, a

hard-fought mid-term election imminent, an

uncertain economy and so many global trouble

spots and conflicts erupting, the coming year is

likely to be as interesting, or more so, than the one

just ending.

_______________________________________________

Saturday, November 29, 2025

THE PRAIRIE EDITOR: Will Tim Walz Have To Withdraw?

The ongoing revelations and allegations of massive

fraud in Minnesota will have numerous legal

consequences in the months and years ahead.

There will also be political consequences, especially

in the state’s midterm campaign cycle now underway,

and which could affect election outcomes in races for

governor, all other statewide offices, U.S. senator,

and races for U.S. House.

The heaviest burden of responsibility and political

blame arising from widespread fraud in various

state-run programs will likely fall on Democratic-Farmer-

Labor (DFL) Governor Tim Walz and his administration.

Walz recently announced he will run next year for an

unprecedented third four-year term, despite polls

indicating significant loss of his voter approval even

before the lates allegations of fraud and

mismanagement of state programs.

In recent years the DFL has been the dominant political

party in Minnesota, controlling all statewide offices and

most of the offices in Minneapolis and St.Paul, as well

as in most other cities.

The Republican Party in Minnesota leads only in rural

and other outstate areas, and holds four of the eight

congressional seats. The DFL lead among urban

voters, especially in Minneapolis and St. Paul, has

significantly outnumbered any GOP lead outstate.

The DFL state party has also created a formidable

get-out-the-vote (GOTV) operation throughout the

state. The GOP state party has floundered in recent

years, and has no GOTV organization to match

their opponents.

In 2024, with its own Governor Walz on the national

ticket, however, the DFL won the state by far less than

expected, and in the 2025 off-year local elections, the

DFL was bitterly divided in the state’s largest city’s

mayoral election in Minneapolis. In the states’s

capital and second largest city, the DFL mayor was

opposed and in an upset, defeated by a more

moderate DFL challenger. In Minneapolis, the

moderate liberal incumbent survived a bitter challenge

from a socialist candidate.

Several major Republican candidates have already

announced they will run for governor of Minnesota

next year.

A private poll recently indicated that the race for

the open U.S. senate seat is much closer than

expected by most political observers of both parties.

A potentially competitive race for the 2nd District\

congressional has occurred following the DFL

incumbent’s retirement to run for the U.S. senate

seat.

Bitter feelings between some DFL leaders in the

aftermath of the 2025 Minneapolis mayoral election

could linger to divide the usual party unity, and

affect the DFL’s vital GOTV efforts in 2026.

Governor Tim Walz is the likeliest focus of political

criticism in this rapidly changing political

environment. When he announced for re-election,

it was assumed he would have no challengers from

his own party. But if the growing fraud scandal

allegations continue to pile up and prove true, he

may be forced, as Joe Biden did in 2024, to retire

from his re-election race or face certain defeat.

________________________________________________

Friday, November 7, 2025

THE PRAIRIE EDITOR: The 2025 Twin City Elections

The Democratic socialist running for mayor of Minneapolis

against incumbent Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party

Mayor Jacob Frey this year failed to unseat Frey who won

a third term in office.

There were fifteen candidates on the non-partisan ballot.

At least three identified with the Democratic Socialists of

America (DSA). No significant Republican ran for mayor.

The controversial ranked-choice voting system is used in

Minneapolis city elections. Frey did not have at least 50

percent plus one in the actual vote counting, but voters

can also make second and third choices on their ballots

so that if no candidate has a majority, second and third

choices are allocated into subsequent calculations until

there are only two candidates left.

Frey reached just over 50% in the second round, and his

major opponent, Omar Fatah was about 6000 votes

behind.

The mayor had led by about 15,000 votes (42%)in the

actual counting of the votes, but his three main DSA

opponents had a combined total of 56%. They had

asked their voters to choose only DSA candidates for

their second and third choices, thus enabling one of them

(most likely Fatah) to overcome Frey’s first ballot lead

and win the election.

With a list of fifteen candidates for mayor, this was an

almost impossible quest because the ballot was so

complicated. In fact, the two trailing DSA candidates’

second and third choices were divided, and Frey received

a substantial enough number of them to win the election.

The Republican Party in the Twin Cities can only muster

about 20-25% of the vote, and thus has little presence

in Minneapolis and St. Paul. They hold few, if any, elected

offices.

Mayor Frey also had good news that regular DFLers

had gained seats on the City Council. DSA and other

radical council members still had a 7-6 majority, but

they no longer had the votes to override a mayoral

vetp. This outcome signals that there will be

stalemate ahead on controversial proposals and

projects — although Frey and his supporting council

members are quite liberal DFLers, and conservative

policies will not be enacted.

In St. Paul, incumbent Mayor Melvin Carter was

defeated for re-election in a stunning upset by

Laotian-born state legislator Kaohly Her who had

entered the race at the last minute, but she had

campaigned tirelessly. As in Minneapolis, St. Paul

city candidates are liberal DFLers, but Mayor-elect

Her is considered to be more moderate than Carter

who had seemed by many observers not to be a

hands-on mayor. Nevertheless, his defeat was a

surprise to most political observers.

All the members of the St. Pau; City Council are

women.

With statewide elections taking place next year,

and key gubernatorial, congressional and legislative

offices at stake, the 2025 urban elections suggest

that the DFL control of statewide offices might face

serious challenge. Republicans have a majority in

outstate Minnesota, including rural areas and most

small towns. The main voter battlefield will in the

suburbs which are more evenly split between the

two parties.

The divide between the regular DFL Party and its

more leftist DSA voters could affect the outcome

of the elections for governor, U.S. senator and other

offices in that the formidable DFL get-out-the-vote

operation could weaken as party leaders continue to

openly feud and criticize each other in the aftermath

of the bitter city elections just held.

________________________________________________

About Barry Casselman

BARRY CASSELMAN is an author, journalist and lecturer who has reported and analyzed American presidential and national politics since 1972.

He founded, edited and published his first newspaper when he was 29. He has been a contributor to many national publications, including The Weekly Standard, realclearpolitics.com, Politico, Roll Call, Washington Examiner, The American Interest, Utne Reader, Campaigns and Elections Magazine, American Experiment Quarterly, Washington Times, The Rothenberg Political Report, Business Today, Election Politics, Business Ethics Magazine, San Francisco Examiner, Washington Insider, and American Commonwealth.

His regular op ed columns and other commentary in print, and on the internet, are distributed through the Preludium News Service. His blog ‘The Prairie Editor” has an international readership and appears on his website at www.barrycasselman.com .

He was a political analyst for WCCO-AM (CBS) for several years, for KSJN-AM (Public Radio International), and for KUOM-AM (National Public Radio). He has also broadcast on RAE in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and beginning in 2000, he produced and broadcast for Voice of America. In 2006, he presented news commentary on LBC, the independent 24-hour news radio network in London, England. He also provided election night analysis in 2006 for Minnesota Public Radio. In 2008, he returned to WCCO-AM for periodic national election commentary. Beginning in 2011, he began weekly commentary on the 2012 presidential campaign on a national radio podcast program originating in Dallas, TX.

Casselman was the original host of “Talk To Your City” on the Minneapolis Television Network, and was a frequent political commentator for KTCA-TV (PBS). In 1992 and 1994, he presented election night analysis for the Conus coast-to-coast All News Channel. In 1996, he provided live coverage from the presidential primaries in Iowa and New Hampshire for All News Channel nationwide. He has also appeared on C-SPAN. In 2008, he was interviewed by ABC-TV Evening News with Charles Gibson.

He has covered national presidential primaries, caucuses and straw polls since 1976, and attended Democratic and Republican national conventions since 1988. He has traveled throughout the United States to report on significant political events, including the national congressional debate in Williamsburg in 1996, the presidential debates, national conventions and events of the Democratic Leadership Council, Democratic National Committee, Republican National Committee, United We Stand America, Reform Party, National Governors Association, NAACP, AFL-CIO, Christian Coalition, CPAC, Green Party and the Independence Party.

In 2012, he was invited to be a civilian participant in the 58th annual seminar on national security at the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, PA. Also in 2012, he was a speaker at the Jefferson Educational Society's Global Summit IV. At that event, he received the Thomas Hagen "Dignitas" Award for lifetime achievement.

From 1990-2011, he was the executive director of the non-profit International Conference Foundation, and hosted more than 500 world leaders, foreign journalists and other international visitors. At the non-partisan Foundation, he also organized four national symposia: the first on low-income housing with then-HUD Secretary Jack Kemp; the second, a highly-acclaimed conference on “Locating the New Political Center in America” with Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and leading spokespersons of the Clinton administration as well as newly-emerged independent groups; the third, a symposium on public communications with then-Governor Tom Ridge, former White House press secretary Mike McCurry, Tony Blankley and other national figures; and in 2003, a symposium on homeland security with Secretary Ridge and leading local and national experts. During this time, he also organized numerous smaller conferences, tours and events for the U.S. Information Agency and the U.S. Department of State for its International Visitor Program and its Foreign Press Center programs. In 2008, he organized a special program for international media and visitors attending the Republican National Convention in St. Paul. The Foundation also sponsored programs presenting domestic and international authors and their books.

In 2007, Mr. Casselman helped create and plan the nationally-broadcast and podcast dialogue between former New York Governor Mario Cuomo and former U.S. Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich at the Cooper Union in New York City, and he continued to work on related debate and public policy discussion projects in the 2008 and 2012 presidential campaigns.

Mr. Casselman has been a lecturer on public policy at Princeton University’s annual international business conferences in New York, and its regional conferences in Chicago since 2005; He also has been a guest lecturer at George Washington University, Carleton College, The Chautauqua (NY) Institution, Gannon University, Hubert Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, Santa Barbara City College, University of St. Thomas, Metropolitan State University, Augsburg College, University of Minnesota, Jefferson Educational Society, and on the international voyages of the Queen Elizabeth 2, Sagafjord, Vistafjord and Royal Viking Sun. He has made presentations on journalism and the arts at Carleton College, University of Minnesota, College of St. Catherine, Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Walker Art Center, Metropolitan State University, Mercyhurst College and the Brazilian Writers Union in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

His non-fiction book North Star Rising was published in 2007 by Pogo Press, an imprint of Finney Company. In 2008, Pogo Press published Minnesota Souvenir, Casselman’s history and visitor guide for the 2008 Republican National Convention in St. Paul. He was editor and co-author of the book Taking Turns: Political Stalemate or a New Direction in the Race for 2012, a preview of that year's national election.

He has been cited in Michael Barone’s Almanac of American Politics and in William Safire’s Political Dictionary. Casselman has invented a number of political words and phrases which are now in frequent usage, and listed in various online dictionaries.

He is also a widely-published American poet, short story writer and playwright whose work has been translated and published in Europe, South America and Asia. He is the author of four published books of literary prose and poetry. His work has been frequently anthologized. Two of his plays, in collaboration with composer Randall Davidson, have been performed by the Actors Theater of St. Paul, Minnesota Orchestra, St. Donat’s Ensemble of Wales, and by independent productions at the Union Depot in St. Paul and the Foss Theater at Augsburg College in Minneapolis. He has provided original texts for two award-winning experimental films, as well as texts for other independent short films and videos.

Barry Casselman was born in Erie, Pennsylvania. He received his B.A. with major honors from the University of Pennsylvania and his M.F.A. at the Writers Workshop at the University of Iowa. He has also studied in Paris, and attended the University of Madrid. He now lives in Minneapolis.