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 49A

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

    Alex Falconer
    (DFL)

  • Candidate picture

    Jeff Houdek
    (Rep)

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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My top priorities are making healthcare more affordable and accessible; taking on the costs leaving Minnesotans working hard but falling further behind; and protecting the things that make Minnesota, Minnesota. I’ll fight to expand MinnesotaCare and stop insurers from denying necessary care; rein in predatory credit-card interest rates and make giant corporations pay their own way; and fully fund public schools, permanently protect the Boundary Waters, defend clean water and wild rice, and stand up for our communities and rights.
Minnesota’s economy is strongest when people can afford to build a life here and businesses can find and keep the workers they need. I’ll focus on major cost pressures like healthcare, childcare and housing; rein in predatory credit-card interest rates; and make sure giant corporations pay their own way instead of shifting costs onto families and small businesses. Economic development should strengthen communities, not leave Minnesotans paying the bill.
Minnesota should make sure opportunity, safety and public services reach every community fairly. I support protecting schools, hospitals and places of worship from immigration enforcement without a signed judicial warrant, strengthening accountability for civil-rights violations, and addressing disparities in healthcare and substance-use treatment so that race, ethnicity or immigration status does not determine whether someone can get the help they need.
Yes. If the DFL wins the House majority, I want to make the Equal Rights Amendment H.F. 1. Every Minnesotan deserves equal protection under the law, regardless of race, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity. Previous DFL majorities enacted important statutory protections for reproductive freedom and LGBTQ+ rights. Enshrining those protections in our Constitution would help safeguard these fundamental rights regardless of which party holds power.
Protecting clean water is one reason I ran for office. I spent nearly a decade fighting to protect the Boundary Waters, and my first House bill would permanently protect its watershed from sulfide-ore copper mining on state lands. I also authored a suite of bills to protect Manoomin, or wild rice. I support strong PFAS protections, science-based drinking-water standards, continued monitoring and testing, and making polluters pay to clean up contamination they create.
I support strong local law enforcement and first responders, along with investments that prevent people from becoming victims in the first place. That includes mental-health and crisis-response resources, school safety and stronger gun-violence prevention legislation. I support restrictions on assault-style weapons and high-capacity magazines while respecting responsible firearm ownership. Success means fewer people hurt, effective emergency response and communities that trust those keeping them
Minnesotans should be able to trust that elections are decided by voters, not whoever can write the biggest check. I support legislation requiring greater transparency around political spending and expanding public financing of elections. Minnesota already has public campaign financing programs, but big interest groups still have significant influence through campaign spending. I want candidates to be accountable to the voters they represent, not the donors funding their campaigns.
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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.