A little more on redistricting -- local flava

In trying to make sense of the new Senate District 41, we see two things that will make it interesting:

• Too many DFLers, not enough seats: In the new 41A, in the northern half of the district, two current DFL legislators are paired: Kate Knuth and Tom Tilberry. As faithful readers of this space know, Knuth has largely used her "local girl makes good" narrative to win the old 50B district for the past few cycles, all while building a profile that marked her as potentially a rising star in the DFL. The way the district is drawn, she has a problem, though -- she loses half of her stronghold in New Brighton. Tilberry, for his part, is not the sort of person who is likely to step aside for Knuth. Meanwhile, in the new 41B, Carolyn Laine, who currently represents the old 50A district, is probably well situated for a run at the new district. There are two potential candidates on the Republican side, but one of them might go 3rd party. That situation is pretty fluid.
• What happens to the Senate seat? The word we've heard is that Barb Goodwin was always intended to be a placeholder in the seat, someone who could hold it until a different, younger candidate came along. I don't know Goodwin's intent for this cycle, but from what I've heard she may not choose to seek re-election in this cycle. That means a potential open seat, which would theoretically clear a space for the Knuth/Tilberry conundrum. Except. . . there's another potential candidate out there. Connie Bernardy, who served out of Fridley from 2001-2007, would be the "next in line" candidate for the seat. It's likely that the Republican candidate will be Gina Bauman, who currently serves on the New Brighton City Council.