On Sunday, incoming House Majority Leader Erin Murphy congratulated the new assistant leaders over Twitter, naming Reps. Carly Melin (Hibbing), John Ward (Baxter), Leon Lillie (North St. Paul), Kim Norton (Rochester), John Persell (Bemidji), Diane Loefller (Minneapolis) and freshman Jacob Isaacson (Shoreview).

In an announcement that brought cheers and jeers from both sides of the aisle, Gov. Mark Dayton ended more than three months of suspense Thursday by awarding $47.5 million in bonding money to nine projects.

Voters are faced with a familiar dilemma in the heart of the Minnesota Iron Range. The unexpected retirement of 26-year DFL Rep. Tom Rukavina at the end of session has left a big hole in DFL-friendly House District 6B, which stretches across cities like Virginia and Eveleth and includes some of the state’s most mining-dependent towns.

Anything could happen in the DFL primary in the 8th Congressional District. Three challengers — Jeff Anderson, Tarryl Clark and Rick Nolan — are running credible campaigns, and turnout is expected to be extremely low for the mid-August primary.

A handful of August primary elections are heating up across the state thanks to the new redistricting map, an uptick in legislative retirements and widespread dissatisfaction with the job lawmakers are doing in St. Paul.

Next month DFL activists will gather in Duluth to endorse a candidate in the 8th Congressional District. The outcome is in little doubt: Former Congressman Rick Nolan is widely expected to walk away with party backing.

The most anticipated political event of the year at the Capitol — the unveiling of court-drawn state legislative and congressional districts that will be used for the next decade — arrived at 1 p.m. Tuesday.

Minnesota lawmakers want to get in and out of the Capitol as quickly as possible this year, a fact that’s evident in skimming through the first bills of the 2012 session.

Legislative leaders have promised a quick legislative session, potentially finishing up business before Easter. But that hasn’t dissuaded legislators from filing more than 140 bills ahead of the 2012 legislative session, which commences next week.

Over the years, DFL campaigns for high-profile offices have had a tendency to blow past party endorsing conventions and end in contested primaries.