ROSEMOUNT, Minn. – A Rosemount High School teacher and football coach announced his intention to challenge Rep. Jason Lewis in Minnesota’s 2nd congressional district.
Jeff Erdmann announced Wednesday his intent to seek the DFL nomination in the 2nd and challenge the talk radio host turned legislator in 2018. Lewis won the seat with 47 percent of the vote over DFL candidate Angie Craig’s 45.2 percent following seven-term incumbent Rep. John Kline’s retirement.
“I’ve been teaching American government for 27 years, I know there is more that unites us than could ever divide us,” Erdmann wrote in a letter on his campaign site. “A better tomorrow does not have to be just hope, it can be a promise.”
Erdmann grew up in Lewistown, Minnesota. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Gustavus Adolphus College and a master’s degree from the University of St. Thomas. He has taught at Rosemount High School for 27 years, teaching social studies and American government.
The campaign website veers to the left side of the Democratic Party. Erdmann “strongly believes health care is a human right” and advocates for Medicare coverage for all Americans. The first issue on his issues page is labeled “Wealth Inequality” and the first policy proposal is to increase taxes on the wealthy.
Erdmann also supports the Equal Rights Amendment and wants legislatures to continue to approve it. States had a 10 year period to approve the amendment which states, “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” Of the 38 states required to approve the amendment, 35 did so prior to the deadline, though four of those rescinded their approval later. Some of the opposition to the amendment was based on the possibility of women being drafted by the military, and argued that the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and Civil Rights Act of 1964 were sufficient in their own right.
Erdmann’s site does place a premium on hard work, and while he opposes a border wall, he does say “credible and effective border security is important to the security of our country.”
Craig has said she is likely to pursue a rematch against Lewis in 2018, but she no longer has a clean path to the DFL nomination.
