Endorsing Rita and John

This letter is paid content. Our lakes in Northern Minnesota are the heart of our region. We love them. We need to protect them. They provide us with the things we cherish—fishing, water sports, quiet reflection. All of it for us who live here and for the many people who come here to enjoy it.

We are lucky, therefore, to have two candidates running in this 2020 election who have strong records in lake protection. Mayor Rita Albrecht, running for Senate District 5, retired as the Northwest Regional Director of the MN DNR and was the liaison for the Statewide Aquatic Invasive Species Advisory Committee. A former small business owner, she understands a healthy environment is crucial for our economy.

Candidate for House District 5A, Representative John Persell is a trained water resource manager and scientist with decades in the fields working to protect the waters in our area. As a legislator, he has worked hard to promote clean and healthy lake ecosystems protecting our recreation, economy and tax base.

Let’s be passionate to protect our precious waters and our very quality of life!

Lin Ward

Bemidji, Minn.