Susann Dye, Franklin Township, is the DFL endorsed candidate for the Minnesota House District 29A seat. House District 29A contains most of the Annandale area, including Annandale, South Haven, Corinna, French Lake and Southside Townships. Other towns in 29A include Rockford, Delano, Montrose, Waverly and Howard Lake.
This is Dye’s first attempt to seek political office. Dye will be facing Joe McDonald, the Republican endorsed candidate for the 29A House seat.
Dye is the daughter of Grover and Jeanne McElderry and has four sisters. She was born in St. Louis Park but said she moved when at an early age and her childhood was spent on a farm in Baldwin, Wis. That is where she experienced raising feeder pigs, chickens, beef cattle and growing soybeans, corn, oats and hay.
At the age of 10, the Dye family moved back to St. Louis Park and eventually settled in Independence where Dye’s parents moved after her father retired from Xcel Energy as a diesel mechanic. Dye’s mother is a homemaker.
Education and experience
Dye graduated from St. Louis Park High School and went on to graduate from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis campus. Dye holds two degrees – a Bachelor of Science in Education and a Bachelor of Arts in Studio Arts. Dye taught middle school art and was a substitute teacher for more than two years. She currently works for the Minneapolis Star and Tribune as their advertising contract administrator. In that position Dye facilitates contract creation, renewal and compliance.
Dye lives with her husband Ben on Fountain Lake. Ben Dye has two children Brooke and Craig, both graduates of Delano High School and a grandson Jonah. Her husband Ben is a business agent for the Local 539 Pipefitters union and he is Dye’s campaign manager and treasurer.
The couple was married in 2011 and they enjoy time on the pontoon, dirt biking and horseback riding. They are both members of the Delano American Legion and volunteer often for the Sunday Omelet Breakfasts.
Political experience
Dye first got involved in politics in 2004, working for the Kerry-Edwards presidential ticket. In 2008 Dye was an alternate delegate to the State DFL Convention in Rochester, and in 2010 was a delegate to the DFL Convention in Duluth. Dye met her husband Ben at the Duluth convention. Recently, Dye was a big supporter of the building of the new Vikings stadium and would have voted for the project.
Q and A
Dye describes herself as a "centrist, middle of the road" Democrat. In a recent interview, Dye answered the following questions:
Q: Would you support a constitutional amendment that would require a three-fifths majority to raise taxes in the state of Minnesota?
A: A three-fifths majority would severely limit decision making by the legislators. One state in particular, California, which has this requirement in place, has severe financial difficulties. It is not sound public policy.
Q: Would you support eliminating business property taxes over a period of 12 years?
A: I would not support eliminating business property taxes because it would result in the increasing of homeowner’s property taxes. They (businesses) should continue to help pay for the services provided in the communities they enjoy.
Q: How should the state of Minnesota handle the illegal immigration problem?
A: Illegal immigration issues should be dealt with and enforced by Federal Government.
Q: Would you support civil unions between same-sex couples?
A: Yes, it is a fairness issue to extend legal benefits to same sex couples.
Q: Would you support Minnesota becoming a ‘Right to Work’ state?
A: No, I believe workers represented by unions should pay their fair share.
Q: Would you support eliminating the Minnesota Department of Education?
A: No, it is important to have a state agency in place to help maintain the consistant quality and effectiveness of public schools through the governance of important set standards.
Q: Would you support making Highway 55 a four lane highway to at least Annandale?
A: Yes, it would improve driving safety, create jobs and improve our state’s infrastructure. I would be a strong advocate for this in the legislature.
Q: Would you support a smaller uni-cameral Minnesota Legislature?
A: No, I do not want Minnesotans to lose the level of representation they enjoy due to the fact that we have two legislative bodies; I also like the checks and balances that are inherently in place with the two bodies.
The supposed cost benefits do not outweigh the loss of representation, nor would they contribute to an improvement in the development of public policy. The character of our communities would no longer be brought to bear on the shaping of public policy.
Q: Would you support cutting the number of counties in half as a cost cutting measure?
A: No, I think it would be a very difficult and costly task to accomplish and it would make it far more difficult to deliver much needed services to our citizens.
Important community based local government control would be lost and our citizens accessibility to involvement in local government would be compromised by the sheer size of the counties created if this were to happen.
Q: What is your stand on abortion?
A: I believe reproductive health care decisions are a private matter for women and their families to decide.
Bi-partisan
Dye would like to see the Minnesota Legislature move more towards the center, "I want to see less of the polarization we have all seen in recent sessions. If elected I would work with all the legislators, Democrat or Republican," Dye said.
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