Secretary of State says 2nd congressional race could move back to the November election if law is overruled

MINNESOTA, USA — Days after 2nd congressional district candidate Adam Weeks was found dead inside his Red Wing home, there’s a new legal push to keep the race in November.

On Monday, congresswoman Angie Craig filed a federal lawsuit to challenge the state law that pushed her race to a February special election.

That state law went into effect in 2013, but elected officials say its origins date back to the 2002 plane crash that killed then Minnesota senator Paul Wellstone just days before the election.

Craig argues pushing the election to February would leave her constituents without a voice in Washington D.C. for nearly a month.

“The lawsuit is about having representation in Washington when some very important issues are going to be addressed,” Craig says.

“That just makes no sense at all and that’s why I’m fighting to make sure every voter gets counted in the November general election.”

Republican challenger Tyler Kistner, however, sees no problems with pushing the election back to February.

He held a press conference Tuesday morning to officially comment on the lawsuit.

“I think it’s wrong that Angie Craig is actively trying to silence the voices of thousands of voters in the second district by trying to rewrite the law so close to the election,” Kistner says.

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Secretary of State Steve Simon says it’s very likely the court’s decision will come before the November election.

“We’re talking close to days than weeks when this would be decided,” Simon says.

His office is encouraging voters in the 2nd district to keep an eye on the situation and to cast a vote on the November ballot just in case the law is overruled before the election.

“If anyone wants to be safe about it, not knowing what the status of the law is and to save themselves some extra time and hassle, then yes, the safest course for that voter is to yes, vote in that contest,” Simon says.

The secretary of state’s office says anyone who already voted for the late Adam Weeks in the 2nd congressional race can change their ballots up to 14 days before the election.

Any voter who already sent in a ballot and left the 2nd congressional race blank can also request to get their ballot back so they can fill in their candidate.