Kittelson joins DFL field in Minnesota’s 2nd District

Minnesota’s open 2nd Congressional District contest has another candidate.

Roger Kittelson, a dairy marketing specialist from Goodhue, announced Tuesday that he will run as a Democrat in 2016 for the seat being vacated by retiring incumbent Republican U.S.  Rep. John Kline. He filed his federal campaign paperwork two weeks ago.

“If you have the ambition, if you have the time and you have enough to care, it’s something a person should do, and that’s why I’m doing it,” Kittelson said.

Roger Kittelson
Roger Kittelson of Goodhue is a DFL candidate for Congress in Minnesota 2nd District. Courtesy of the Kittelson campaign

Kittelson is the third Democrat to enter the race. He joins Angie Craig and Mary Lawrence, both of whom have been campaigning and raising money for months. They’ve also tapped some of their personal wealth to fund their campaigns.

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“We have multi-millionaires running for Congress in the Democratic party,” he said. “So, am I going to compete with that kind of money? No.”

Kittelson said he will seek the DFL endorsement and will drop out if he doesn’t receive it.

The four Republicans in the race are David Gerson, John Howe, Jason Lewis and Pam Myhra.

On his campaign website, Kittelson details four positions. He opposes the Trans-Pacific Partnership and supports a single-payer health care system. He also favors campaign finance reform and a balanced federal budget.

Kittelson has run for office before. He ran for the Minnesota House in 1982 against Republican Rep. Steve Sviggum, and ran again last year in Minneapolis against DFL Rep. Jean Wagenius. In 2008, Kittelson was a candidate for Congress in Wisconsin.