Kubly supports new minority leader

ST. PAUL -- Sen. Gary Kubly, DFL-Granite Falls, was among those who supported Sen. Tom Bakk's selection as the minority leader to represent the party in the State Senate.

The DFL caucus selected Bakk its minority leader on Thursday, just two days after the election that saw the party lose its majority status in the chamber.

Bakk, a carpenter from Cook, was an easy favorite for Kubly. The local senator had initially supported Bakk when he was among the early DFL gubernatorial candidates.

Kubly said Bakk is widely respected as a moderate and should be effective at moving the DFL agenda forward as a minority leader.

Kubly said he also felt it was important that the party move quickly to select new leadership. The party needs to let people know it is not about to be caught lying on its back after the election defeats, and there is much work to do. The Republican Party will begin selecting its leadership this Saturday and the DFL needs its representative to serve as a point man for upcoming discussions with the majority party.