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Data H.eceived: Kerrived by:

To: Ken Martin, Chair of the DFL in Minnesota (via email); Marge Hoffa, Vice Chair of
the DFL in Minnesota (via email); and Chris Thorp and Jill Garcia, conveners of the DFL
Standing Committee on the Constitution, Bylaws and Rules (via email)

Complainant: Senator Carolyn Laine

Complaint against: Anoka County DFL; and Anoka County DFL Chair Wes Volkenant

Date of offense: Monday, October 15, 2018

Offense: The Revocation of the Sean Broom for Anoka County Commissioner’s DFL
Resolution of Support by the Anoka County DFL in violation of DFL Constitution Article
III, Section 8, Subsection B; Article III, Section 4, Subsection H; Article III, Section 20; and
Article III, Section 16.

Offense Summary

On Monday, October 15, 2018, Complainant attended the regularly scheduled meeting of
the Anoka County DFL and observed the following violations of the State DFL
Constitution:

1. Insufficiency of Notice - The revocation of the DFL’s Resolution of Support for

Anoka County Commissioner candidate Sean Broom (“Broom Resolution”)
without proper notice pursuant to Article III, Section 8, Subsection B of the DFL
Constitution.
2. Allowing ineligible delegates to vote - Mr. Volkenant allowed the motion to
revoke the Broom Resolution to be voted on by people who do not reside within
Anoka County District 4 in violation of State DFL Constitution Article III, Section
4, Subsection H.
3. Not allowing an eligible delegate to vote - Complainant is a Distinguished Party
Leader by virtue of her position as a DFL State Senator. She is also a resident of
Anoka County District 4. She was therefore eligible to vote on the motion to revoke
the Broom Resolution. However, when Complainant inquired whether she could
vote, Mr. Volkenant replied that she could not, a violation of Article III, Section 20
of the State DFL Constitution.
4. Failing to facilitate an inclusive organizational culture - By allowing to take place
the allegations contained herein and for failing to grant the Broom Campaign an
opportunity to defend itself, Mr. Volkenant has failed to facilitate an inclusive
organizational culture as required by Article III, Section 16 of the State DFL
Constitution.

1
Background

According to Article 1, Section C of the Anoka County DFL’s constitution (Exhibit A), the
purpose of the Anoka County DFL is to, “provide a mechanism of endorsement of
candidates for the Anoka County Board of Commissioners.”

Despite this stated purpose, the Anoka County DFL declined to hold an endorsing
convention or commission for the Anoka County Commissioner - District 4 seat and
instead gave Resolutions of Support to two candidates - Mandy Meisner and Sean Broom.

A scheduled, four-way telephone conversation took place on September 11, 2018 between
Complainant, Mr. Broom, Broom Campaign manager Mary Granlund, and DFL Chair
Ken Martin. Mr. Martin was driving at the time, and Complainant asked him if Mr.
Broom could call himself a “strong Democrat” on his campaign literature. Mr. Martin
responded, “Yes, he could even call himself the DFL candidate.” Complainant admits
that there is some room to debate whether Mr. Martin meant, “the DFL candidate,” or the
“DFL candidate,” but three people on the call understood Mr. Martin to have said “the
DFL candidate,” and Mr. Martin did not clarify or specify beyond reiterating that Mr.
Broom could use the phrase. Ms. Granlund contemporaneously memorialized Mr.
Martin’s statement by taking handwritten notes in a notebook she uses to track campaign
matters (Exhibit B).

Subsequent to this conversation, the Broom Campaign published campaign literature

that stated that Mr. Broom was “the DFL candidate” (Exhibit C), believing such a
statement to be in compliance with what Mr. Martin had stated previously on the phone.

Upon viewing the Broom Campaign’s literature, the Meisner campaign complained to
DFL leadership, including Mr. Martin and Mr. Volkenant. The Broom Campaign was
chastised by Mr. Volkenant via email dated October 14, 2018 for the use of the word “the”
in conjunction with the phrase “DFL candidate” (Exhibit D). Mr. Martin claimed that he
limited his advice to Mr. Broom saying he was the “DFL Candidate.” However, the other
parties to the conversation, including Complainant, had heard “the DFL Candidate.”

2
Unfortunately, the literature was already at the mail house, ready to be distributed to the
residents of Anoka County District 4. Unable to “fix” the literature at the mail house by
eliminating the word “the” or otherwise altering it, the Broom Campaign instead sought,
in a show of good faith, to alter the literature that is to be hand delivered.

This action was deemed insufficient by Mr. Volkenant and the Meisner campaign and,
on Monday, October 15, 2018, a discussion lasting over 90 minutes was held regarding
how to revoke the Broom Resolution. In the end, a motion was made to revoke the Broom
Resolution, was voted on, and passed, and the Broom Resolution was deemed revoked
(Exhibit E). Subsequent to the passage of the revocation motion, the committee also
passed a motion to demand the Broom Campaign issue a retraction or they may file a
complaint with the Minnesota Campaign Finance Board. Mr. Volkenant then sent Mr.
Broom a Cease and Desist Letter (Exhibit F).

Count 1 - Notice of the vote to revoke the Broom Campaign’s Resolution of Support
was not properly noticed as required by the State DFL Constitution

Article III, Section 8, Subsection B of the DFL Constitution requires that notice shall be
provided to all delegates and alternates at least 10 days prior to a meeting.

As a member of the committee1 and resident of Anoka County District 4, Complainant is

therefore a delegate to any body formed to make decisions regarding whether an
endorsement or other party support was bestowed upon or revoked from any candidate
for the office of Anoka County Commissioner in District 4. Accordingly, Complainant
should have been among the delegates who received notice that a vote to revoke a

1More on Complainant’s status as a Distinguished Party Leader and therefore a member of the Anoka
County DFL Central committee will be discussed in Count 3.

3
Resolution of Support was to occur by a notice sent at least 10 days prior to the convening
of the decision-making body.

However, notice of the meeting (Exhibit G) and a copy of the meeting agenda (Exhibit H)
was sent electronically on October 9, 2018, a mere 6 days before the meeting, which does
not comply with the notice requirements contained within the state DFL Constitution.
Additionally, there was no mention contained in that notice or on the meeting agenda
that a vote to revoke the Broom Resolution was to take place. In fact, Mr. Volkenant was
aware that the Broom Campaign was unable to send a representative (Exhibit I) and he
himself assured Ms. Granlund and Mr. Broom in his October 14 email that such a vote
would not occur (Exhibit D).

Of her own volition, informing no one and not appearing as a representative of the Broom
campaign, Complainant attended the meeting. She arrived at 8:30 for the 7:00 meeting,
because according to the email sent earlier in the day, the issue would not come up until
the end of the meeting, if it came up at all. Instead, upon arriving at the meeting,
Complainant discovered that the topic had apparently dominated the meeting, and a
motion to revoke the Broom Resolution was already on the floor. By Mr. Volkenant’s own
admission, at the end of the meeting they had not completed the meeting’s agenda and
had instead spent over 90 minutes discussing how to approach the issue of Mr. Broom’s
campaign literature.

By holding the vote to revoke the Broom Resolution and sending the Broom Campaign a
Cease and Desist Letter, Mr. Volkenant and the Anoka County DFL violated the notice
requirements as outlined in the State DFL’s Constitution.

Count 2 - Central Committee members not residing in Anoka County District 4 were
allowed to vote on the motion to revoke the Broom Campaign’s Resolution of Support
in violation of the DFL Constitution

Article III, Section 4, Subsection H states that, “No one may vote to grant or revoke an
endorsement unless they are a resident of the area in which that election will occur.”

4
Though this is an issue of the revocation of a Resolution of Support, not an endorsement,
the requirement that those who vote to revoke an endorsement must reside within the
electoral jurisdiction is instructive. Though a Resolution of Support is, to some extent, a
lesser level of support than an endorsement, the same rule should apply. It would make
little sense to allow people not residing within an electoral jurisdiction vote to support or
revoke support for a candidate for office within that electoral jurisdiction.

Among those who voted were Senate District 41 DFL Chair Deb Douglas, who resides in
New Brighton, a city in Ramsey County. She inquired whether she was permitted to vote,
saying she had never voted in an Anoka County DFL meeting before, and Mr. Volkenant
said he was giving her permission to vote. This was clearly a violation of the DFL
Constitution since Ms. Douglas doesn’t even live within the boundaries of the organizing
unit, let alone within the boundaries of Anoka County District 4.

By Complainant’s calculation, of the 8 people who were allowed to vote on revoking the
Broom Resolution, only two of the delegates are people who actually reside within the
electoral jurisdiction of Anoka County District 4 - Mr. John Brillhart (who is openly
supporting and working on Ms. Meisner’s campaign) and Mr. Jon Rehlander (Senate
District 41 DFL 1st Vice Chair). Yet 8 people, including Ms. Douglas, voted on the issue.
This is a clear violation of the State DFL constitution.

5
Count 3 - Complainant is a Distinguished Party Leader who resides in Anoka County
District 4 and is therefore a delegate to the Anoka County DFL Central Committee, yet
she was not allowed to vote on the motion to revoke the Broom Campaign’s Resolution
of Support

Article III, Section 20 of the DFL Constitution states, “The following Distinguished Party
Leader delegates shall be delegates at-large to all DFL conventions and endorsing
commissions whose boundaries include their residence: DFL members of the State
Senate...”

Complainant is a DFL State Senator who resides in the city of Columbia Heights, the
entirety of which is located in Anoka County District 4. She is therefore a Distinguished
Party Leader Delegate and a Delegate to all DFL conventions and endorsing commissions
that bestow or revoke the party’s support of candidates for Anoka County Commissioner
- District 4.

Prior to the vote, Complainant clarified that she was not at the meeting as a representative
of the Broom Campaign and was instead there in her personal capacity and her capacity
as a State Senator in Anoka County. She inquired of Mr. Volkenant whether she was
allowed to vote on the motion. She was told she could not. This is a clear violation of the
DFL Constitution.

6
Count 4 - The Anoka County DFL has not fostered an inclusive organizational culture

Article III, Section 16 of the DFL constitution states, “The DFL Party chair and other DFL
Party Officers at every level shall foster and encourage a culture of...inclusion among all
individuals participating in official party activities.”

Mr. Volkenant was informed by Mr. Broom via email on October 15, 2018 that the Broom
Campaign had a door knock event scheduled with two other DFL candidates at the time
of the Anoka County DFL’s regularly scheduled meeting and that they would be
therefore unable to send a campaign representative (Exhibit I). Mr. Volkenant, in his
October 14, 2018 email, had gone so far as to assure the Broom campaign that no action
would be taken at the meeting regarding the literature at issue (Exhibit D). Nevertheless,
not one but TWO motions were made: one to revoke the Broom Resolution outright, and
another to demand a retraction of the statement at issue or a complaint may be filed with
the Minnesota Campaign Finance Board. Both motions passed without the Broom
Campaign having a chance to defend itself or speak on its own behalf.

By allowing the motion to be in-order and not giving the Broom Campaign the
opportunity to speak2, Mr. Volkenant and the Anoka County DFL behaved in an
exclusionary way that is contradictory to the DFL Constitution’s Requirement that party
leaders foster a culture of inclusion.

This exclusionary behavior coupled with the actions alleged in Counts 1-3 clearly
demonstrate that Mr. Volkenant was not trying to foster a culture of inclusion, but was
instead allowing the Meisner campaign, with Meisner Campaign Manager Avonna
Starck at the helm, run roughshod over the processes prescribed in the State DFL
Constitution.

This culture of exclusion by party leadership at the Senate District and County
Organizing Unit level is a violation of the DFL constitution.

2Indeed, had Mr. Volkenant been candid about the fact that a motion to revoke the Broom Resolution
might be forthcoming at the meeting, the Broom Campaign would have perhaps been more inclined to
ensure that a representative from the campaign was available at the meeting. However, his false
assurances led the Broom Campaign to conclude that it was unnecessary to pull a volunteer away from
the scheduled door knock event and send them instead to the Anoka County DFL meeting.

7
Remedy Sought

In light of the pervasive disregard for the stated purpose of the Anoka County DFL and
of the processes prescribed in the state and Anoka County DFL Constitutions,
Complainant requests that the vote to revoke the Broom Resolution be invalidated and
that the party’s support of the Broom Campaign be reinstated. Likewise, the vote
demanding a retraction and stating that they may file a complaint with the Campaign
Finance Board action should also be invalidated.

Respectfully Submitted,

Senator Carolyn Laine

DFL - Anoka County

CC: Wes Volkenant, Chair of the Anoka County DFL (via email)

Exhibits Attached

8
 Exhib,+A
CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS OF THE ANOKA COUNTY DFL PARTY
(Revised in 2017)

ARTICLE I: GENERAL PRINCIPLES and the chairs ofthe senate district organizations
rvholly or partially within Anoka County or their
Section I
INAME] The name of this appointed representative.
organization is the Anoka County DFL.
BYLA\Y A: The Anoka County DFL Executive
Section 2 [POLICIESJ Committee shall be responsible for the administration and
organization of party affairs within the county, subject to
the control and direction ofthe Anoka County DFL
Subsection A
[General Rules and Policies] County Convention and the Anoka County DFL Central
General rules and policies stated in the
Committee.
Constitution, Bylaws, and Call of the Minnesota
DFL, and the National Democratic Parly shall BYLAW B: The chair shall be empowered to convene
govern the Anoka County DFL, if clearly and conduct meetings ofthe Anoka County DFL
applicable. Executive Committee and the Anoka County DFL Central
Committee and shall also convene the Anoka County DFL
Subsection B [Conventions and Delegate County C0nvention.
Selectionl The general rules and policies
goveming conventions and delegates as stated in BYLAW C: Officers shall be etected to two-year
terms.
the Constitutions, Bylaws, and Calls of the
Minnesota DFL shall govern the Anoka County 2 [ANOKA COUNTY DFL CENTRAL
Section
DFL. COMMITTEEI ThejnskalquntJ pFL Cen]gl-
Subsection
r\
/r'i_.-_"-<\

Nrorygjg-#re
purpose of the
Anoka County DFL is to provide a meshanism for
ttre{fr[ffiy
endorsement of candidatJs for
ffi;ii;rupiqeLqrsf ,ffi,l{gw,Fjre*
election of DFL endorsed candidates on the ballot
in Anoka County.
ARTICLE II: SUBORDINATIOI{
Section I
ISUPERIOR DOCUMENTS] This
Constitution and any Bylaws adopted pursuant to it
are subordinate to the Minnesota DFL Constitution
and Bylaws. Matters not specifically govemed by
this Constitution or its Bylaws, but provided for in
the superior documents, shall be given effect based
on the superior documents if the provisions in
question clearly apply to the Anoka County DFL.
If there is a conflict between specific provisions of
this document and general provisions of superior
documents, the provisions of this document shall
apply unless that superior document clearly
prohibits such appl ication.
Committee shall include the Anoka County DFL
Executive Committee and two members from each
sefite Diffi;i;nony o' pi,iryffi7;;[ffiil5 to
trAATAffiTGlected by that Senate District, qnd up_-!g.
seven
# at-larse members aonointed bv the cenlral
ggumi$eLdl-sf.shich*esideie"lt$.qha &s*y. At any
Central Committee meeting where a Senate District
member is absent, qlgltery$_%duly designated by the
same Senate Districffiffitttitute. Each Senate
District shall report the names of its designated
members and alternates to the Secretary.
BYLAW A: between conventions, the Anoka
County DFL Central Committee may declare and
fill vacancies among party ollicers and at-large
menrbers.
BYLA\Y B: .A guorum shall consist of a majority
of the delegates presert.
BYLAW C: Special Central Committee
Meetings may be called by either the Chair; by any
3 members of the Executive Committee; or by 20
percent of the Central Committee.

ARTICLE III: PARTY ORGANIZATIONS Section 3 IVACANCIES & DISMISSALS] In

the case of a vacancy in any Anoka County
I IANOKA COUNTY DFL
Section Executive Committee positions, the vacancy
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEEI The Anoka County shall be filled by the Anoka County DFL Central
e, EgqlElg!0!0$tee-shaltconsistotachaix;-a- Committee. Party officers may be dismissed by
Vice Chair: an Outreach Officer. a Secretary:
.-*-*d1d*€
and a the Anoka County DFL Central Committee for
ry_.*._..*%jF.
Treasurer: cause only on the grounds ofclear malfeasance,
-L-,,'4'
 misfeasance, or nonfeasance in office - using the
same procedure outlined in the State DFL
Constitution.
ARTICLE IV: CONVENTIONS AND
SPECIAL ENDORSING COM M ISSIONS
Section 1 ICOUNTY CONVENTION] The
Anoka County Convention will be lreld in odd-
rgg1.b,gle.d-y--e,gs. The business of the Couiifi*-
Convention shall be to: consider amendments to
this Constitution and its By,laws; elect officers,
and transact other business as may come before
it.
Section 2 [BYLAWS] Bylaws to the Constitution may
be adopted and amended by a trvo-thirds vote of the
Anoka County DFL County Convention or by trvo-
thirds vote of the Anoka County DFL Central
Conrmittee. Bylarvs concerning matters not expressly
governed by and not in conflict lvith this Constitution
may be adopted by a trvo-thirds vote of the Anoka
County DFL Central Commiftee members voting on the
question, provided that a quorum is present; and fufther
provided that such Bylalvs were considered at a prior
meeting of the Anoka County DFL Central Committee
and a notice of intent to consider Bylarvs rvas included
in the meeting notice.

_ "$ection2- {"COUNTY CONVENTION

Deleuates and Alternates to the
L _DEI:ESIJESI,
);-stiG ffi;i.ut cpffii'ffi;a nSl'gafej a'fr'- .-, ,,v
ffiit Altemates to the DFL State Conventip.n rvho i.-I.
were elected at the last Senate District
conventions and who reside in Anoka County
shall be Delegates to the Anoka County
Convention.

Section 3 ICOUNTY COMMISSIONER

DrsTRrcT ENDORSING COMMISSIONSI
TheA,noka County DFL shall have authority to.
call an endorsing conrmission in each Countll
Commissioner District.

BYLAW A: d quorum {o.l_t_ttg p-y_.lp-g.qe q_!-

qq9.9.:jlg shall.tre,a.pajpyi.fy-.9f th-o,.q9 .1egistered at
the convention.

BYLAW B: A candidate for endorsement

must receive an affirmative vote by_tl!y-o;th!fI.S of
the delegates at an Endorsing Commission.

Section 4 [COUNTY COMMISSIONER

DrsjFR[cT EN DORSINQ{]OMM I SSrON 4,t , 14a
u> r'

b El ec ar Es l iDe e gat"slLtd nt t..n ar-e9io__

t . 4,.rr3 }l.t..'l r'ti{':r r' J
-
Senate District DFL Conventions rvho reside in
the County Commissioner Distriit
-Comm
shalffi*
Delegates to the County iss ioner D i strict
Endorsing Commission. The Endorsing _r.
Commission tvill have no Alternates. .d
"d

ARTICLE V: AMENDMBNT PROCESS

Section I [AMENDMENTS] This Constitution

may be amended by a twothirds vote of any
Convention of the Anoka County DFL where
consideration of the Constitution is indicated as part
of the CALL.
 Exhibit C-

E.
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-1"!=,i_ER

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Gmail - Fwd: Sean-Mandy & the Broom Literature Piece Page 1 of2

Exhibit?
ffitffimw$il Carolyn Laine <carolynlaine@gmail.com>

Fwd: Sean-Mandy & the Broom Literature Piece

1 message

Mary-Rose Granlund <maryrosegran@gmail.com> Mon, Oct 15,2018 at 11:32 AM

To: carolynlaine@gmail. com

Begin fonruarded message:

From: W & C VOLKENANT <cwvolkenant@msn.com>

Date: October 14,2018 at 9:01 :33 AM CDT
To: Sean Broom <sdbroom@gmail.com>, Mandy Meisner <mandymeisnerOO@gmail.com>
Gc: "avonna.caroline@gmail.com" <avonna.caroline@gmail.com>, " Mary Granlund"
<maryrosegran@gmail.com>, "pat\Mithavon@comcast.net" <patwithavon@comcast.net>,
"Rehlander, Jonathon" <jonathon.rehlander@rbc.com>, Ken Martin <kmartin@dfl.org>,
"belawren@prodigy.net" <belawren@prodigy.net>, "aarajohn$on@gmail.com"
<aarajohnson @g mail.com>, Maggie Akhavan <maggieakhavan@g mail. com>
Subject: Sean-Mandy & the Broom Literature Piece

As of Sunday morning, here's my recap and description of where we're at, as I

understand it:

The Meisner campaign identified that a piece of literature that was to be distributed
by the Broom campaign today and tomorrow, used the words "The DFL Candidate"
prominently displayed. Those words suggest to the casual reader that Sean is either
the only DFL candidate, or is the endorsed DFL candidate in the race, which is an
erroneous factual statement.

The Meisner campaign reached out to DFL Chair Ken Martin to complain, and a
Cease & Desist letter was being crafted to be sent to the Broom campaign, telling
them to pull the offending pieces of literature. I got involved, because once I got
home last night, llearned of the incident, and was beingasked to sign and send this
letter on behalf of the Anoka County DFL.

I was able to reach Ken Martin, myself, by e-mail and by phone. I had been informed
that Ken had been approached about the DFL wording a month ago, and there was
reason to believer there was a misunderstanding of what could be stated by the
Broom campaign. Ken confirmed that he had followed up on this as he was driving
back from an event in Nisswa last night, and agreed that the wording was wrong, but
that it had been misunderstood in the conversation last month.

https:/imail.google.comlmaiUul0?iFd51aeffab4&view:pt&search:al1&permthid:thread... 1012012018
Gmail - Fwd: Sean-Mandy & the Broom Literature Piece Page? of2

Ken Martin and I agreed that the word "The" needed to be covered (it would be
appropriate to say "DFL Candidate" or imply that Sean is a DFLer) or that the
statement needs to be modified with a word making it read as an opinion (such as,
"The better DFL candidate" or "The smartest DFL candidate). An opinion statement
might be disagreed with by the Meisner campaign, but is allowable and
commonplace in campaign literature pieces.

The literature piece as presented to Ken and I can not be distributed. Campaign
Manager Mary Granlund acknowledged this to Ken and I last night. The Broom
campaign is to be working on this problem this morning. I've asked to be kept
informed as to what is being done with the literature.

SD 41 DFL officers Douglas and Rehlander were also informed of this last night. They
were aware of the Cease & Desist letter being prepared by the Meisner campaign for
my signature. I was asked to still send that letter. lnstead, based on the steps taken
last night, I am proceeding with this e-mailto all of the parties involved at this time.
! have asked that SD 41 DFL officers be our eyes & ears on the ground, and inform
me if literature does end up being distributed going forward, with that erroneous
statement included.

This issue was not on the agenda for Monday night's Anoka County DFL meeting. lf
representatives of the two campaigns appear on Monday, and have further issues
that need to be aired or grieved, I will make time in the later part of the meeting to
do so. I am hoping to put this specific issue behind us, however, and I will be
available later today to continue to referee, and to provide the Meisner campaign
with my statement and/or evidence that the Broom campaign has addressed the
change(s) to their literature.

I have plans to be doing signage for the Eckhardt House campaign today, as well as
family chores this afternoon, so I'd appreciate hearing from Sean or Mary before LL,
if possible, and I may not be back to this until late-afternoon or early-evening.

I am also CCing my fellow County DFL Chair Officers, to bring them up-to-speed, as
well.

Have a good Sunday!

Wes Volkenant
763-434-1551

https://mail.google.com/maiUul0?ik:d5laeffab4&view:pt&search:all&permthid:thread... 1012012018
Gmail - Fwd: Anoka County DFL Took Action Last Night (Broom-Meisner Campaign) Page I of 2

Eilhibit€
ffiffi ffiww#rfi Carolyn Laine <carolynlaine@gmai!.com>

Fwd: Anoka Gounty DFL Took Action Last Night (Broom-Meisner Gampaign)
1 message

Sean Broom Tue, Oct 16,2018 at 9:04 AM

carolynlaine@g mail. com

Sent from my iPhone

Begin forwarded message:

From: W & C VOLKENANT <cwvolkenant@msn.com>

Date: October 16,2018 at 08:56:47 CDT
To: Sean Broom <sdbroom@gmail.com>, " Mary Granlund" <maryrosegran@gmail.com>
Gc: Mandy Meisner <mandymeisner00@gmail.com>, "avonna.caroline@gmail.com"
<avonna^caroline@gmail.com>, Ken Martin <kmartin@dfl.org>, "aarajohnson@gmail.com"
<aarajohnson@gmail. com>, Maggie Akhavan <maggieakhavan @gmail. com>,
"belawren@prodigy.nef' <belawren@prodigy.neF, "patwithavon@comcast.net"
<patwithavon@comcast. net>, "Reh lander, Jonathon" <jonathon. rehlander@rbc. com>
Subject: Anoka County DFL Took Action Last Night (Broom-Meisner Campaign)

After nearly a 9O-minute discussion last night, we passed two actions, Sean and
Mary, directed at your campaign, in light of the erroneous statement that appears in
the Broom campaign literature that is in the process of being mailed to voters in
your district. This is a report of our actions last night for the fullgroup on the earlier
e-mails; I will be composing a formal Cease & Desist letter to the campaign today, as
well.

First, we passed a motion to withdraw our resolution of support to the Broom

campaign. I will be e-mailing the State DFL this morning to inform them of this.
With only three weeks to go, there may be little or no practical result of this action,
nor do we deny your ability to self-identify as a DFLer. But, we felt our support for
your candidacy had been abused when this literature was prepared, created and
released, with the clear implication that Sean is the only Demooat in the race. lt
wasn't until last night that we learned that the Broom campaign has made repeated
insinuations that Mandy Meisner is less of a Democrat or actually a Republican,
because she has appealed to Republican voters in the District for their votes. Mandy
Meisner came to the DFL for its support, and met the County DFL's threshold for its
support of her candidacy last winter. We stand by our belief that there are two
Democrats in this contest.

Second, we passed a motion requesting that your campaign retract your erroneous
statement publicly, by no later than Saturday, October 271h, and state for the record
that there are two Democrats in your race. As part of our motion, we determined

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Gmail - Fwd: Anoka County DFL Took Action Last Night (Broom-Meisner Campaign) Page 2 of 2

that if a retraction is not made, the Anoka County DFL may refer this matter to the
MN Campaign Finance Board.

Understand that our action does not prevent the Meisner campaign from lodging its
own complaint with the Campaign Finance Board.

Nor have we specified the manner in which you shall make a public retraction. We
discussed a number of options and whether or not to specifli how to direct the
campaign to do this. These options include: a statement on your campaign's social
media and/or websites; using local newspapers to either run a retraction ad, send in
a letter to the editor, or issue a news release to them; or creating a new mailing to
be sent to the same mailing list of voters, that would include the retraction and
statement that Sean is one of two Democrats in your contest. We chose not to
mandate any of those options, but we expect the campaign to use one or more of
those options to publicly announce the retraction and correction.

lf you have questions for me, lwill be available most of this afternoon, by phone,
e-mail or Facebook Messenger.

Wes Volkenant
763-434-1ss7

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Gmail - Anoka County DFL Meeting Monday 7PM Coon Rapids Civic Center Page 1 of 1

Exhibit&
Wffimm#fi Carolyn Laine <carolynlaine@gmail.com>

Anoka County DFL Meeting Monday 7PM Coon Rapids Givic Center
1 message

Aara Johnson <aarajohnson@gmail.com> Tue, oct 9,2018 at 8:45 AM

To: AnokaCou ntyDFL <anokacou ntydfl@goog leg rou ps. com>

Good morning,

We look fonruard to seeing you next Monday evening, October 15th at 7PM in the Arts & Crafts Room at the
Coon Rapids Civic Center. Attached are the agenda and September minutes.

lf you will not be present but have a report to submit, please send it to Secretary Aara Johnson
(aarajoh nson@gmail com) and Chair Wes Volkenant (cr,wolkenant@msn.corn).
"

lf you have information to share, such as a flyer or calendar of events, please submit an attachment and/or
information to be included in the minutes to Aara Johnson.

See you Monday!

Aara

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2 attachments

County DFL Meeting 9.17 Minutes.docx

ffi fi,:*"
County DFL Meeting 10.15 Asenda.docx
ffi l;i*^

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Anoka County DFL
October 2018 Minutes
E*hibit H

Anoka County DFL

October 15, 2018 Agenda

1) Call to Order
2) Welcome/lntroductions
3) ApproveAgenda
4) Approve September Meeting Minutes
5) Accept Treasurer's Report
6) Guests
7) Old Business
i) Report on County DFL Fall Feast: funds raised, brief feedbach set a timetable to
plan next year's activity
8) New Business
i) Report of the DFL request to help defray Sample Ballot costs
ii) Report on the $1000 donation for Social Media buys
a) Chair Officer actions on the request
9) SD Reports
i) SD 31:
ii) sD 35:
iii) SD 36:
iv) SD 37:
vJ SD 38:
vi) SD 41:
10) Officer Reports
il Chair:
iil Vice-Chair:
iii) Secretary:
iv) Treasurer:
v) Special Director for Community [renamed from Living) Library:
vi) Senior Caucus:
11) Announcements - Other Comments/Actions [Other New Business)
12) Adjournment