After the shootings of state legislators and their family members, Minnesota DFL Chair Richard Carlbom feared that enthusiasm he was seeing among people interested in running for office would fade.
But that wasn’t what he found when he attended a DFL fish fry in northern Minnesota the Monday after the attacks.
“The room was somber, but resolute,” he said, noting one person told the crowd they planned to honor Democratic House Leader Melissa Hortman by running for the Legislature.
“I hope that, in this moment, people will think carefully about what service means to them, what it means to their fellow Minnesotans, and ultimately choose to serve in the example that Melissa Hortman served for us all.”
Across the country, increased threats and harassment in recent years have had a chilling effect on local elected officials’ willingness to engage in political activities, from running for re-election to working on controversial issues to attending public events, according to surveys by Princeton University’s Bridging Divides Initiative and nonprofit CivicPulse.
The assassination of Rep. Hortman and the shooting of Sen. John Hoffman this month was categorically different than threats and harassment. And while the attacks have made some people more determined to serve, it has also prompted officeholders, party officials and community members to wonder: In a state that has long prided itself on civic participation, who exactly will be willing to run for office?
‘It’s not worthwhile’
Elected officials say harassment has become an unfortunate but predictable part of public service — so common it often goes unreported.
There are signs the problem is getting worse.