Max Nesterak, Minnesota Reformer

Minnesota Democrats are already embroiled in an ugly battle for control of the state House after a judge ruled one of their newly elected members was ineligible to hold office for not living in the district he won.

Now, another Democratic candidate faces a residency challenge, but this time in the race for the Senate District 60 seat to replace former Majority Leader Kari Dzeidzic, who died of cancer last month, leaving the Senate tied 33-33.

Mohamed Jama, a potential top contender in a crowded special election to represent the safely Democratic district in northeast Minneapolis and Cedar-Riverside, likely does not meet the residency requirements according to state voter data. ...

In March 2023, Abdijalil Sheik-Yusuf went before the Minnesota Senate Taxes Committee with a critical plea.

Not enough parents could take advantage of a state tax credit for low-income families for tutoring services from companies like his, Success Tutoring.

“What we have here is not an achievement gap, we have an opportunity gap. We have students who are not able to get the help that they need because the parents cannot afford it,” Sheik-Yusuf said. ...

A Republican candidate for a state House seat who is running on his experience in law enforcement was excoriated by a state judge last fall for “intentionally or recklessly mischaracterizing the truth” on a pair of affidavits in a felony drug case.

House candidate Bidal Duran was a deputy with the Hubbard County Sheriff’s Office last year, when he requested permission to search the cell phones of two men arrested during a traffic stop that turned up a large quantity of meth and thousands in cash.

Duran first said the suspects were pulled over in a routine speed trap on a quiet county road but later said he was tipped off by a confidential informant, leading the judge to deny the search warrant and accuse him of “lying” about the existence of the informant. ...

ST. CLOUD, Minn. — Former President Donald Trump had new material on Vice President Kamala Harris for thousands of cheering supporters in St. Cloud on Saturday evening at a rally with his running mate, Ohio U.S. Sen. J.D Vance.

Trump called Harris — the likely Democratic nominee for president since President Joe Biden ended his reelection campaign a week ago — a “radical left lunatic” who supports defunding the police, taking away guns, letting in tens of millions of undocumented immigrants, and limiting red meat. He also said she isn’t very smart.

Trump also took swings at his other favorite targets: Biden, “fake news,” radical Islamic terrorism and violent “illegal aliens” whom he compared to Dr. Hannibal Lecter from the horror movie “Silence of the Lambs.” ...

In fall 2021, D.C.-area restaurant owner Naeem Mohd was presented with an unbelievable investment opportunity.

Two political operatives-turned-venture capitalists would triple Mohd’s money in just 18 months if he invested $300,000 in their new California winery.

The pair had been paid in grapes by a former client and had hired a well-respected Sonoma winemaker to turn those grapes into profit. They promised if they didn’t pay Mohd the full $900,000 on time, they would tack on 10% monthly interest on any outstanding balance, according to the contract shared with the Reformer. ...