Minnesota and North Dakota Voter's Guide

Forum Communications Co., in collaboration with the League of Women Voters of Minnesota and of North Dakota, is providing this voter guide to help keep you informed ahead of the 2024 election.

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Voter Guide

Minnesota State House District 2B

House - State Representatives serve in the Minnesota House of Representatives, the lower chamber of the state legislature. They write and vote on legislation to create, repeal, or change state laws affecting many issues, like health care, the environment, and the economy. They also vote on state taxes and state spending.

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  • Candidate picture

    Matt Bliss
    (Rep)

  • Candidate picture

    Emily Thabes
    (DFL)

Biographical Information

If elected, what will your top three priorities be and why? (750 characters)

What will you do to support a vibrant economy across Minnesota and to address inflation? (500 characters)

What legislation, if any, would you support to address racial or ethnic disparities in Minnesota? (500 characters)

Do you support the adoption of a ballot issue to add the Equal Rights Amendment into the Minnesota State Constitution why or why not? (500 characters)

What legislation, if any, would you support to protect clean air and water in Minnesota? (500 characters)

What legislation, if any, would you support to meet the need for safe communities? (500 characters)

What changes to legislation would you support to reduce the influence of big money in elections? (500 characters)

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We are obligated to the land and to one another, and so is our government. My three priorities come from that.

Childcare for All. Parents here cannot work without care, and providers cannot stay open on what they are paid. I support universal child care with living wages for providers and a choice of setting for parents.

Health care close to home, from birth through old age. That means maternity care, mental health care, addiction treatment, and elder care that people can reach without driving an hour or more.

Water and land stewardship in partnership with sovereign Native nations. Clean water supports our wild rice, our fishing, our drinking water, and our local economy.
The costs that hit families hardest here are child care, housing, health care, and property taxes. I will work to lower them. I support universal child care, help with down payments and home repair, and fully funding Local Government Aid so local costs stop landing on property tax bills. I will strengthen career programs at community, technical, and tribal colleges, enforce wage theft laws, and support family farmers. People who grow up here should be able to build a career here.
I will support legislation that meets the state's obligations to sovereign Native nations. That includes protecting wild rice and water, keeping reservations whole when district lines are drawn, voting access for tribal and rural communities, and career pathways through tribal colleges. I also support language access in state services and schools, and Driver's Licenses for All. Every family here should be safe and able to reach care, school, and work.
Yes. Equal rights belong in the state constitution because they should not change with each new Legislature. A regular law can be rewritten by any majority. A constitutional amendment goes to the voters and stays until the voters change it. I would vote to put the Equal Rights Amendment on the ballot so Minnesotans can decide for themselves. Every person in this district should have the same protection under the law, and I trust voters to say so.
I will protect water at the source, here at the Headwaters of the Mississippi. I will defend Minnesota's law on forever chemicals and extend protection to private wells. I support free well testing, working with farmers on cover crops and buffers, protecting wild rice, and restoring the money counties use to fight invasive species. I oppose sulfide mining near the Boundary Waters. Whoever pollutes should pay for the cleanup. Rural Minnesota should build clean energy and get paid for it.
People are safer when they can reach help and when they trust the people sworn to protect them. I support mental health care and addiction treatment close to home, so deputies are not the only answer to every crisis. I am a hunter and gun owner. I support keeping guns away from domestic abusers, requiring reports of lost and stolen firearms, and banning ghost guns. Teachers should teach, and should not be asked to carry weapons. Emergency alerts should reach every rural resident.
Government is obligated to people, and voters deserve to know who is paying to influence them. I would author legislation requiring full disclosure of dark money and independent spending, and I would give the Campaign Finance Board stronger enforcement power. I support Minnesota's resolution asking Congress to overturn Citizens United. I will protect the political contribution refund and public financing tied to spending limits, which help small donors.
Powered by League of Women Voters Education Fund

The League of Women Voters of Minnesota and North Dakota crafted the questions sent to the candidates in the Spring of 2024. They reached out to candidates based on contact information in their public candidate filings. Candidates with email addresses were invited and reminded with emails. Candidates with only mailing addresses were sent a letter. Candidates with phone numbers received a phone call as well.

Candidate responses are published as they responded and have not been edited, except when responses were longer than the given character limit. In those cases, the responses are truncated.

VOTE411 is brought to you by the League of Women Voters Education Fund and League of Women Voters of Minnesota Education Fund. The League of Women Voters does not support or oppose any political party or candidate for office.