It’s called not having a mandate! You begin as a weak governor and probably finish as one as well.
by Charlie Leck
Here’s the facts, Jack!
Minnesota will elect a governor, again in 2010, who will not carry a majority of those who vote. The winner will likely get anywhere from 36 percent to 42 percent of the vote (and the lower number is more likely).
The Democrat, Mark Dayton, continues to lead in almost every poll, but the largest percentage of voters he pulls is 42 percent. He drops down all the way to 38 percent. At the bottom level, that leaves 62 percent to be divided between the Republican Party candidate (Tom Emmer) and the independent (Tom Horner).
It is virtually certain that a governor will again be elected with less than 50 percent of the voters backing him.
So what?
Such a small percentage of the vote means that a governor is elected without a mandate of any kind from the people. It means that legislators from all parties don’t really take the governor seriously. He has no great power of persuasion over those who vote in the State House and State Senate.
The people themselves have not sent the governor into office with any clear message.
This has been going on in Minnesota for a long time now. It has left state politics and state governance in a state of utter confusion and indecision.
Here we go again!
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