Good morning. Get ready for a classic July weekend in Minnesota. Hot, hot, hot but dry, dry, dry.

Election season is upon us and hundreds of candidates are in search of votes. Not sure who they are? Don’t worry we’ve got you covered now that early voting is open in the leadup to the Aug. 11 primary election. MPR News surveyed candidates in local, state and federal races to hear why they're running, their experience and their goals. Hear from the candidates themselves through our Build Your Ballot tool by entering your address to get a customized look at who is seeking your vote. 

The upcoming midterm election has led to a bumper crop of campaign fundraising emails. Campaigns and political organizations hope to get the attention of donors, mostly the small-dollar givers who they can come back to over and over. Some also sell their donor lists. It means once a person is on one list, they can find themselves hit up by several campaigns. Peter Cox took a deep dive into the science behind the email solicitations and the tactics that commonly get used. Eric Wilson, executive director for the Center of Campaign Innovation, has some advice. “My recommendation to folks is if you are interested in donating to political campaigns, have a separate email inbox that  you use to make those donations and to sign up for campaigns to prevent your inbox from being overrun.” Wilson says he'd also be hesitant about sharing his phone number with campaigns for the same reason. Text-message based solicitations are becoming more common.

Legislative candidates are getting an earful about fraud as they door knock and campaign around the state. Star Tribune reporter Ryan Faircloth writes that voters in swing districts are raising concerns with Democrats and Republicans alike about the issue following reports of extensive misuse of money in state government programs. Faircloth reports that while Democratic candidates around the country have been buoyed by President Donald Trump’s unpopularity, their success in Minnesota could be tempered by ongoing concerns over fraud and whether lawmakers did enough to put up guardrails to stop it. Republicans have laid much of the blame for fraud at Democrats’ feet. And it was part of the reason Gov. Tim Walz decided to drop a bid for a third term in office. Democratic candidates have attempted to address the issue by highlighting policies they brought forward to tackle fraud and additional measures they’d put in place to further curb it.

One of the Feeding Our Future fraud cases has been complicated by extradition roadblocks. The New York Times wrote about the arrest of Abdikerm Eidleh in Mogadishu, Somalia. The Department of Justice described him as a central player in the COVID-19 fraud scheme. But he remains in Somali custody and the lack of an extradition treaty is seen as a big reason. President Donald Trump’s disparagement of the African country hasn’t helped matters. “As Aimee Bock’s right-hand man, he recruited people into the scheme, helped bring new sites under Feeding Our Future’s sponsorship, and shook participants down for kickbacks,” former federal prosecutor Joe Thompson told the newspaper. “Bringing him back from Somalia would be an extraordinary achievement.” 

Minnesota’s Campaign Finance Board adopted new guidance yesterday in response to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling lifting limits on coordinated party expenditures. The board voted for new interpretations exempting in-kind contributions, goods or services , from political party contribution limits to candidates. Cash contributions from political parties to candidates would still be counted under the limits. Some members of the board expressed concerns about striking an appropriate balance as they tried to align the court’s ruling with state campaign finance laws. They also noted that Minnesota has rules in place around circumvention earmarking that they would still enforce vigorously.