State Rep. Tom Emmer is being challenged for re-election this year by DFLer Christine Brazelton. Both are residents of Delano.

House Dist. 19B is located in eastern Wright County and includes the communities of Otsego, Albertville, St. Michael, Rockford Township, Rockford, Delano, Franklin Township, Montrose, Waverly, Woodland Township and Victor Township.

The candidates were asked to submit statements. Each person was asked to include in a response:

1. Candidate biography: Please include a short biography of yourself, your background, your personal and professional experiences and any other information you wish to share.

2. Candidate statement: Please comment on the top issues you feel are important in this election. Explain any changes you would like to see made to address the community's most urgent problems. Please include your vision for the community's future and what government should do to guide future growth.

Here are their responses:

Christine Brazelton

Candidate biography:

Office: 19B Minnesota House - DFL endorsed

Name: Christine Brazelton

Address: 548 Tower Drive, Delano

Family: Husband Larry, two children, one foster child, one grandchild with another grandchild due in December.

Education: Graduated with high honors, BA Social Science

Occupation: Child Support Officer

Years in District: 7

Civic involvement: League of Women Voters, GFWC of Delano, AFSCME local executive council

Contact info: Website: www.brazeltonforhouse.com Email: brazelton@iglide.net Phone: 763-972-4022

Candidate statement:

Why I'm running: I am a candidate for Minnesota's State House of Representatives for District 19B, but I'm not a politician.

I'm a wife and mother. I'm a public servant who still remembers what that means. I am running for public office because government is broken and politics as usual won't fix it.

It's time we quit playing games, roll up our sleeves, and get to work solving the real problems that we face here in Wright County and across the State of Minnesota.

I'm running for people like my cousin. She didn't have insurance. When a varicose vein in her leg ruptured, like so many others without insurance, she didn't go to a doctor.

She hoped it would get better on its own. It didn't, and when she could no longer stand the pain, she broke down and went to the emergency room. The leg was infected and the infection was septic. She was admitted to the hospital, where she died.

I'm running for the woman whose husband was in the construction business but could not find work. She owned her own business, renting a chair in a salon. Business was slow, because people put off getting their hair done when the economy is bad. Pressure was high as her family counted on her income to make ends meet. They were behind on all their bills and she found out she was pregnant. They had no insurance. She cried when she told her husband they had a baby on the way. He punched the wall.

I'm running for the disabled man who can't afford a car and can't get to work from Delano to Buffalo because there is no public transportation from Delano to Buffalo.

I'm running for the people whose government let them down in a very real way on August 1, 2007 when they were crossing the I-35W Bridge, and for all the people in the rest of the state who have to cross bridges every day to get to work.

The economy is failing too many of us, property taxes are soaring while market values are going down. Quality of life is slipping for all but the wealthiest. We have built a great State with great people through a lot of hard work and tough choices. We need to head back in the right direction and can do that by finding common ground. We will never do that by sniping at one another. It's time for real change.

We must return to our values, and return our government to its limited but important role of organizing civil society, doing together what none of us can possibly do alone.

Tom Emmer

Candidate biography:

Office: Minnesota House of Representatives, House District 19B. The endorsed Republican incumbent running for a two year term.

Address: Delano.

Family: Spouse: Jacquie; Children: Tripp, age 18; Jack, age 17; Bobby, age 15; Katie, age 13; Joe, age 11; Bill, age 9; and John, age 6.

Education: J.D. William Mitchell College of Law; B.A. University of Alaska-Fairbanks.

Occupation: Attorney.

Years in district: 20.

We have lived in the same area for twenty years.

Civic involvement: Chairman Finance Committee Sts. Peter & Paul Catholic Church in Loretto; Member Delano Catholic Community;

Knights of Columbus, Loretto Council; Member of West Hennepin Public Safety Joint Powers Commission; Volunteer International Special Olympics; Member Delano Sportsman's Club; Loretto Volunteer youth baseball coach; Former Vice President of Crow River Youth Hockey Association; Former Vice President of Minnesota Hockey District 5; Former President and current Board Member of the Delano Area Sports Arena; Delano, Rockford, Watertown volunteer youth hockey coach.

Contact: Tom.Emmer.com

Candidate statement:

Why I'm running: I'm running for office because I believe in public service and in being part of the solution. As a husband and father raising seven children in the district, I am intimately familiar with the challenges facing families in our growing County. As the owner of a business, I have personal experience with the challenges facing employers and employees. Prior to entering the legislature, I served on the City Council in two cities for ten years. As a result, I understand the challenges facing local government and the residents of our cities and townships. As a member of the legislature, I have worked hard to represent the district and our state on many issues including, health care, education, public safety, energy, communication, transportation, legal reform, campaign finance reform, personal privacy, individual property rights and the list goes on.

Enacting laws should not be our goal. We need to revisit and repeal unnecessary regulation and restriction that is dragging our economy down. We need to reduce taxes on entrepreneurs and small business to encourage business growth that creates new jobs. We need to eliminate the ban on development of nuclear power and we must encourage development of our existing energy resources including clean coal and natural gas and oil. We need to eliminate timber restrictions to reignite our lumber industry. We need to eliminate restrictions on our ability to shop for healthcare services and insurance. In short, we need restore our self-responsibility and our ability to self-determine.