Freshman Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., has lined up behind state Sen. Tarryl Clark, D, in the Democratic primary to take on Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann.

In an e-mail to supporters Wednesday, Franken wrote that Clark "delivered for her district as a state senator, and she'll do the same for the residents of the 6th District as their representative in Congress," and asked them to join him in supporting Clark campaign and donating to her campaign. Franken himself has proven his fundraising mettle, raising more than $25 million for his 2008 campaign and the ensuing recount.

Clark is the Minnesota party establishment favorite, and has already earned a large number of labor union endorsements, but she faces a potential primary contest against Maureen Reed, a physician and former Independent Party lieutenant governor candidate who surprised observers with her strong fundraising since joining the race in the spring.

Jim Meffert, the executive director of the Minnesota Optometrists Association and president of the state PTA, has became the second Democrat to file to run in the 3rd District, joining forensic psychiatrist Maureen Hackett in the race to take on freshman Rep. Erik Paulsen, R-Minn.

Meffert told CQ Politics he filed a statement of candidacy last week and the organizational paperwork Monday, but has no immediate plans to formally launch a campaign because most voters aren't paying attention at this early stage. Instead, he is focused on laying the groundwork for the campaign, including fundraising and conducting grassroots outreach with local Democratic constituencies in the suburban Minneapolis district.

Still looking at the race is state Sen. Terri Bonoff, who ran unsuccessfully for the party's nomination in the district in 2008. Meffert said he and Bonoff "have talked quite a bit" and that it was his impression that she is "probably not going to go there" but is "waiting to see to make sure there's another viable candidate."

Paulsen is one of three GOP freshman in districts President Barack Obama won in 2008, and Democrats plan to target him as someone who has failed to offer bipartisan solutions since coming to Congress. "He's a safe Republican vote," said Meffert. "That's not something that really reflects this district."

CQ Politics rates the general election contest Leans Republican.

Dozens of House Democrats bucked their party on Saturday's health care vote. But how about those who might have taken a political risk by siding with their party?

Let's look at the Democrats from Republican-leaning districts who voted for the bill and Republicans from Democratic-friendly districts who opposed it.

Of the 49 House Democrats that represent districts that John McCain won in 2008, 18 of them voted for the bill.

Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak, D, who was just re-elected on Tuesday to a third term, already has his sights set on a higher office. Rybak filed the paperwork for a run for governor in 2010, jumping to the top of a long list of candidates in the Democratic field.

Rybak announced the move in an e-mail to supporters Thursday evening. "Filing these papers is the first step in the process of setting up the Rybak for Governor campaign," he wrote. "In the weeks ahead, we will be building a grassroots campaign to take our message to every corner of the state."

The popular mayor has not been shy about expressing his interest in the race, and has already participated in several gubernatorial candidate events, so the announcement comes as no surprise. Local observers expect him to be a formidable candidate, but not a shoo-in for the Democratic nomination.

State Rep. Paul Kohls became an early casualty of the crowded race for Minnesota governor, dropping out Thursday because of a lack of support from GOP constituencies.

"I've come to the conclusion that I don't have sufficient support from the delegates to keep going," Kohls told reporters.

Kohls, who has been in the state House since 2002, was not among the top finishers in the state Republican party's straw poll earlier this month. The poll was won by House Minority Leader Marty Seifert, one of the first and most prominent Republicans to join the race after incumbent Tim Pawlenty, a Republcan, announced he would not seek a third term.

Forensic psychiatrist Maureen Hackett filed paperwork earlier this month for a congressional campaign in Minnesota's 3rd District, making her the first Democrat taking formal steps toward a challenge to freshman Republican Erik Paulsen.

Hackett says she remains in "serious exploration mode," but Federal Election Commission records released over the weekend show she formed a Hackett for Congress fundraising committee Oct. 15. The former U.S. Air Force psychiatrist is expected to make an announcement in the next two weeks.

Democrat Jim Meffert-Nelson, president of the Minnesota PTA, is also expected to announce his bid in the coming weeks. And state Sen. Terri Bonoff, who lost in a Democratic primary for the seat in 2008, has not ruled out another run.

An expensive Democratic primary is brewing in Minnesota's 6th Congressional dDstrict, with two well-funded would-be challengers moving towards a showdown to take on Republican Michele Bachmann.

The party establishment favorite, state Sen. Tarryl Clark, announced Monday that she has raised in impressive $308,000 since declaring her candidacy July 28. The campaign will report just under $270,000 in the bank at the end of September.

Physician Maureen Reed, Clark's rival for the Democratic nomination, announced a $130,000 fundraising quarter. After taking in more than $200,000 in the second quarter, the former Independent Party lieutenant governor candidate has over $300,000 cash on hand.

Minnesota state Sen. Tarryl Clark has gained early front-runner status over physician Maureen Reed in their contest for the Democratic nomination to challenge Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann, one of Congress' most outspoken conservative firebrands.

But Reed, who officially unveiled her full campaign team Friday, is ceding no ground to Clark in the 6th District Democratic contest.

In addition to hiring a campaign manager, several field staffers and a communications director, the Reed campaign has also signed up Lake Research Partners -- headed by prominent Democratic pollster Celinda Lake -- and Sandberg Communications to help with strategy and communications.

Reed signaled at mid-year that she wouldn't be easily dismissed as she reported a big fundraising haul for the year's second quarter, raising more than $200,000 in just two months after announcing her candidacy. Her third quarter fundraising report, due by Oct. 15, will be another test of the strength of her campaign.

If you thought you were seeing Rep. Michele Bachmann every time you turned on the television, it's because you probably were.

The Smart Politics blog, from the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance at the University of Minnesota, has an illuminating analysis of the 6th District congresswoman's surging national media exposure.

The study, which examined media transcripts from the day Bachmann took office in 2007, found that the Minnesota Republican, who has a penchant for making controversial statements, has made 22 appearances on national cable news programs so far this year, matching her total number of appearances for all of 2008. "Representative Bachmann has thus substantially increased her national profile from averaging one national cable television news interview every 16.6 days in 2008 to one appearance every 9.1 days thus far in 2009," wrote Eric Ostermeier, the center's research associate.

Minnesota House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher is joining the race for governor in what looks likely to be the most crowded political contest of the 2010 cycle.

Kelliher, a Democrat, announced on a new campaign Web site Thursday that she had filed the paperwork for a campaign. In a message to supporters, she said she had the experience, commitment and coalition-building skills to lead the state out of its economic struggles. A formal campaign announcement will come in "a few weeks," she said.

Kelliher has one of the highest profiles among a number of Democrats already in the race. The field includes former U.S. Sen. Mark Dayton and former state House Minority Leader Matt Entenza; state Sens. John Marty and Tom Bakk; state Reps. Paul Thissen and Tom Rukavina; and Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner.