Two Democratic candidates new to the northern Minnesota political scene have announced they intend to challenge Congressman Pete Stauber in the 2026 election.
Emanuel Anastos and Cyle Cramer are the first two DFLers to declare their candidacy for Minnesota’s Eighth Congressional District. Both have filed campaign finance paperwork with the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) and have said they will seek the DFL endorsement.
Cramer is an employment law attorney for a Twin Cities-based firm and served in the Army National Guard. He lives in Chisago City.
“I will be a champion of fair treatment, affordable healthcare, better education, and rural investment,” says the DFLer on his website. “Committed to listening to constituents, I aim to ensure Washington works for the people, not the other way around.”
Anastos is a graduate of Carleton College in Northfield. He works as a child welfare case manager for the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa and has lived on the reservation since 2022.
In a statement announcing his candidacy, Anastos said he wants to “massively raise taxes” on billionaires to fund universal health care. Additionally, the DFLer says he wants to make college free, believes illegal aliens “bring a huge boost to the economy,” and supports impeaching President Donald Trump.
Stauber, a Republican serving his fourth term in the U.S. House of Representatives, is running for reelection and has raised more than $270,000 in the first three months of 2025. His most recent FEC filing shows he has almost $620,000 in cash on hand.
A former police officer, Stauber previously ruled out campaigns for U.S. Senate and governor in 2026.
Last November, Stauber defeated former DFL legislator Jen Schultz by more than 16 points. He bested Schultz in 2022 by a similar margin.
Schultz, for her part, has stayed active in her criticism of Stauber on social media and has helped organize “Peoples’ Town Halls” across the congressional district in recent months. Schultz has not announced whether she will challenge Stauber a third time.
Hank Long
Hank Long is a journalism and communications professional whose writing career includes coverage of the Minnesota legislature, city and county governments and the commercial real estate industry. Hank received his undergraduate degree at the University of Minnesota, where he studied journalism, and his law degree at the University of St. Thomas. The Minnesota native lives in the Twin Cities with his wife and four children. His dream is to be around when the Vikings win the Super Bowl.
