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Serving Northern St. Louis County, Minnesota

Stauber announces GOP bid for Eighth District seat

County commissioner seeking seat now held by Rick Nolan

Marshall Helmberger
Posted 7/12/17

ELY – Speaking from the steps of Ely’s City Hall, Duluth Police Lieutenant and St. Louis County Commissioner Pete Stauber announced Monday that he is running for the U.S. Congress from …

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Stauber announces GOP bid for Eighth District seat

County commissioner seeking seat now held by Rick Nolan

Posted

ELY – Speaking from the steps of Ely’s City Hall, Duluth Police Lieutenant and St. Louis County Commissioner Pete Stauber announced Monday that he is running for the U.S. Congress from Minnesota’s Eighth District.

Stauber, a Republican, is seeking the seat now held by Rep. Rick Nolan, a Democrat.

Stauber first announced his candidacy in Hermantown, and traveled to Ely Monday afternoon to, again, state his intentions. Stauber said he knows what Eighth District residents want for the future and believes he has the views, convictions, blue-collar background, and leadership experience to achieve them.

“Ely and the Iron Range matter to me,” he said before a small crowd gathered in front of City Hall. “I won’t tiptoe around the fact that I fully support both taconite and precious metals mining. Let’s move forward together to show the world that Minnesota respects both the mining industry and the environment.”

Stauber is the first Republican to officially declare for the 2018 race. Stewart Mills, who suffered narrow defeats to Nolan in 2014 and 2016, has not said if he is considering another run.

“For many years I have watched Washington, D.C., from the perspective of a Christian, husband, father, small business owner, law enforcement officer, labor union president, city councilor, and county commissioner,” said Stauber, 51, who also briefly played professional hockey. “I can no longer sit back and watch as Washington fails to make common sense legislation. That is why, after careful consideration and prayer, I am today announcing my candidacy and will seek the Republican endorsement for the United States Congress in Minnesota’s Eighth District for election in 2018.”

Stauber supported Republican Donald Trump’s presidential campaign and helped introduce his running mate, now-Vice President Mike Pence, during a rally in Duluth on the day before last year’s election.

Stauber, elected to the St. Louis County board of commissioners in 2012, represents its fifth district, covering the cities of Hermantown, Proctor and Rice Lake, as well as the townships of Brevator, Canosia, Duluth, Gnesen, Lakewood, Midway, and Solway. He was reelected in 2016 to a four-year term that expires in January 2021.

 “I’ve been honored to represent the citizens of Minnesota’s largest county for five years, and I’ve seen up-close what works and what needs to be better in the Eighth District,” he said. “From our cities to our townships, from mining and timber harvesting, to agriculture and the importance of our area’s resorts and recreation, the Eighth District has a diversity of needs and opportunities. My intentions are not to move the country to the left or right, but to move us all forward.”

 Stauber is retiring soon from the Duluth Police Department, where he’s served for 22 years, to devote his time to being a county commissioner and running for office.

 “We’re going to work very hard during this campaign, visiting people and businesses all across the district,” he said. “But I will also remain an active county commissioner. I won’t let this campaign interfere with my responsibilities to the people of St. Louis County.”

Additional

background

‰Stauber was an eight-year member of the Hermantown City Council before being elected to the county board.

‰Stauber, currently a Lieutenant and West Area Commander with the Duluth Police Department, is committed to protecting the rights of individuals and holding accountable those who commit crimes and disobey our laws. He has been a victim of a violent gun crime himself.

“In December of 1995, I was shot in the head while off-duty by an individual with an extended criminal history,” said Stauber. “A few years after that, while on duty, I was looking down the barrel of a handgun when the suspect pulled the trigger and, by the grace of God, the gun malfunctioned. Even after being a victim of a violent crime, I still adamantly support the Second Amendment, the right to keep and bear arms.”

‰Stauber is currently president of Law Enforcement Labor Services Local 363.

‰Stauber grew up in Duluth’s Piedmont Heights neighborhood with his five brothers. He graduated from Duluth Denfeld High School in 1984 and then attended Lake Superior State University in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. As captain of the Lakers’ hockey squad, Stauber was part of its Division 1 Men’s Ice Hockey championship team in 1988. It was at Lake Superior State where he earned his BA degree in criminal justice with a minor in fire science.

After graduation, he signed a contract with the Detroit Red Wings. He played hockey with the organization for three years before retiring and moving back to Minnesota in 1994. For several years he was a coach in Hermantown’s Youth Hockey Association and was founder of “Stauber Brothers Military Heroes Hockey Camp,” which enabled children of military families to attend the hockey camp free of charge.

‰Stauber is co-owner of a small business in Duluth, the Duluth Hockey Company (formerly Stauber Bros. Sports).

‰Stauber’s wife, Jodi, is an Iraq war veteran and retired from the 148th Fighter Wing as Minnesota’s first female Command Chief. They have four children, ranging in ages from 11 to 17.