(Matthew Holding Eagle III – Minnesota NPR) – In northwestern Minnesota, about 70 miles south of the Canadian border, sits the Pennington County seat of Thief River Falls. With a population of just under 9,000, it’s home to industry behemoths Arctic Cat and Digi-Key — two of the area’s largest employers.
For election season in this heavily conservative part of the state, national politics are taking a back seat to a local hot-button issue that crosses political divides: the Thief River Falls Public Schools 2024 Operating Levy Referendum.
Facing declining enrollment, the referendum could decide the future of Franklin Middle School. Supporters of the increased levy say if it were to fail, the middle school may close and the students would be divided between the elementary and high school there. They insist it must pass and the middle school must stay.
Josh Watne, 32, is deeply invested in the issue. He grew up in Thief River Falls and is a teacher at the middle school. Sitting in his classroom, Watne said the levy would equate to approximately $900 per pupil in a district that serves around 1,900 students.
“It’s going to cost our taxpayers. For simple numbers, for a $100,000 home, you would pay $11 a month,” he said. “So, you take that times 12. That’s your annual contribution [$132].”
He said even if the referendum passes, the district will still need to make about $300,000 in additional cuts because of the discrepancy between state and federal funding formulas. And if it were to fail, Watne said those most affected would be the students.
Concerning education on a national level, Watne said vice-presidential hopeful Gov. Tim Walz’s background as a teacher does little to calm his mounting trepidation.
“It would be interesting to hear education enter the presidential race a lot more than it has,” he said. “It has not been a huge centerpiece, which is unfortunate because of the financial situation so many schools in our state and around the country are in. I would really like to see more conversation about it.”
Courtney Skjerven is a technology teacher at the elementary school and considers himself middle-of-the-road politically. He said he hasn’t had much time to think about national politics because he’s been too busy trying to educate the community on the school referendum which he supports.
Skjerven said no matter what happens in this election or what side of the political spectrum someone is on, people need to come together.
“I just feel that there is such a divide in this country, and there’s not enough listening. There’s not enough understanding that people have different views based on their experiences and their perspectives, and just to value that,” he said.
“There are so many opportunities to communicate and learn these days that we don’t do a lot of face-to-face and we’re seeing a struggle with listening and sharing a perspective, and maybe even being open to change your mind. And I hope here in the future, we can do a better job of that in our country and locally as well.”
Alecia Hunt also considers herself middle-of-the-road politically. As executive director of the Thief River Falls Area Food Shelf, Hunt said much like other food shelves throughout the state, her organization is struggling to help people in need. It’s an issue she said not enough politicians are talking about at any level. Hunt is also struggling with the school’s referendum because property taxes are already high, which she sees as another hot-button issue in this election.
“But as a parent we need this for our school and our kids so I’m voting ‘yes,’” she said. “I don’t disagree with anyone that’s going to vote ‘no,’ but I think anybody that can vote ‘yes’ for their children or grandchildren needs to.”
As a mother of four — three of them girls — Hunt said the national issue in which she’s most invested is reproductive rights.
“With my work population, the clientele I serve, we see a lot of tragedy, a lot of rape, a lot of different issues from 11 years old and up,” she said. “And I don’t think men should make decisions for women.”
That is in stark contrast to Danielle German’s view. She is a tutor at Serendipity Art Hub who believes abortion is too accessible. She said it also encourages unprotected sex and immaturity.
“I’m Christian and I believe that women should have freedom. But I think that when you’re pregnant, it’s a child. It’s not just a piece of tissue that’s sitting in your body,” she said. “A lot of states women under 18 don’t need parental consent to get an abortion, and that encourages them to be sexually active as much as they want. I feel like it just enables them too much and doesn’t give them the consequences.”
While German plans to vote, she’s conflicted about its importance.
“I’m just one person. I don’t know if my vote will make a difference. I personally don’t like the electoral college system, because I feel like that demeans the amount of everyone’s votes,” she said. “If it’s just majority vote, then I think it should be by each person, exact number, but that’s not really something I can change.”
At the Rusty Nail Bar and Grill in downtown Thief River Falls, Matthew Simons, a 50-something cook, said he has voted in every election since he’s been eligible. He moved to the Twin Cities the day after graduating and lived there for 30 years. He said he lived close to the 3rd Precinct, which protesters burned during the unrest after George Floyd’s murder. He said he suffered panic attacks because of that experience. So, he moved back to his hometown.
Simons said on a national level he’s invested in women’s health care.
“It seems like there is a willingness on one side of our political system to dismantle a woman’s autonomy and bodily autonomy,” he said. “I don’t think that’s right.”
And now Simons is looking at the election as he begins planning for the next stage of his life.
“Social Security is a big issue. I’m getting older, and one day I would like to retire,” he said. “I read through Project 2025 and parts were germane to me, and it seems like plans are being laid down to dismantle Social Security.”
One area in which Simons has complete faith is voter security.
“It’s going to be kind of a reenactment of last time, though. They’re already laying the groundwork for frivolous lawsuits and just throwing anything against the wall to see if it sticks,” he said. “And nothing’s going to stick. It’s going to be a fair election.”
But Franky Slawson doesn’t agree. He is a security guard at Seven Clans Casino. He says his mistrust in the electoral system could continue if they don’t “fix what’s wrong.”
“There’s no way that Joe Biden won the last election after how many votes that Trump got, whether it’s a popular vote or the actual election itself, Trump won,” Slawson said. “And I’m not trying to say that just because, you know, I like Donald Trump. I’m saying it just because the guy actually won.”
In his personal time, he cohosts the podcast Renegade Radio, which has 4.9K followers on Facebook. In early October, the show hosted a digital town hall with both Thief River Falls mayoral candidates — longtime incumbent Brian Holmer and his opponent, city council member Mike Lorenson.
Shelby Wagner, 29, a bartender at Seven Clans Casino, also doesn’t believe that the last election was legally and fairly decided. She said her life was better under former President Trump, which included being able to do more activities with her children. Wagner said the first thing she’ll do Tuesday morning is head down to the polls to vote for him.
“Trump would do a lot better being our president than Kamala would. He is for the people. We had lower gas prices, lower groceries, lower everything. As a single mom, I was able to afford things,” she said. “Now I’m struggling, working paycheck to paycheck and constantly trying to figure out how I’m going to feed my kids, how I’m going to get gas to go to work, all these different things. If Trump got back in, I would be able to do more things with my kids.”
FOLLOW US FOR INSTANT UPDATES!
