DFLers in SD50 pull plug on Chaudhary
DFL Party loyalists in Senate District 50 voted tonight to pull the endorsement for DFL Sen. Satveer Chaudhary. Minutes later, they backed former State Representative Barb Goodwin for the seat. Goodwin says she'd like to see Chaudhary end his campaign but Chaudhary is committed to running in the primary.
He said he's been door knocking, is prepared to send out 5,000 pieces of campaign literature and has been actively campaigning at parades in the district.
The decision to pull Chaudhary's party endorsement has been brewing since the end of the legislative session. In the waning hours of the session, Chaudhary made a last minute push to include a special walleye rule for a lake where he owns a cabin. The bill was vetoed by Governor Pawlenty in part because of Chaudhary's action. Chaudhary repeatedly apologized for what he called a "honest mistake." But DFL Party loyalists were in no mood to forgive.
The decision to yank the DFL party endorsement after it's been awarded is unprecedented in the modern era of DFL politics. The only other time party leaders can remember it happening is in a 1952 Secretary of State's race.
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