Before concluding Gov. Mark Dayton has built nirvana on the Mississippi, be sure to sort through the hyperbole.

Tom Horner took a bigger risk than most when he embarked on his run for governor of Minnesota. The former Republican pundit and strategist turned Independence Party candidate alienated many of his old political allies when he switched party affiliation to challenge to GOP candidate Tom Emmer and DFLer Mark Dayton.

There's one stark difference in recent polls that will likely be the key to Tuesday's vote: the makeup of the electorate in each. The disparate top line results can almost solely be laid at the feet of this key difference.

The last KSTP poll showed DFLer Mark Dayton at 42 percent, Republican Tom Emmer at 37 percent support. Tom Horner had 14 percent. In the last MPR/Humphrey poll, Dayton had 38 percent, Emmer had 27 percent and Horner had 16.

Concerned is not a strong enough word to describe political scholar Norm Ornstein's feelings about the polarization in today's politics. Among the many reasons Ornstein cited during an event at the University of Minnesota's Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs for the current level of partisanship is redistricting.

When the results of the latest Minnesota Public Radio and Humphrey Institute poll were released Wednesday, things didn't look good for GOP nominee Tom Emmer. In a response to the numbers, Emmer campaign manager Cullen Sheehan sent a detailed memo to supporters dissecting the poll.

The latest poll on the Minnesota governor's race shows former Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Dayton and GOP state Rep. Tom Emmer running neck and neck.

A panel discussion this morning at the University of Minnesota explored the ramifications of this week's ruling on unallotment by the state Supreme Court.

Bush Foundation President Peter Hutchinson frequently has used the phrase “bowling in the fog” to describe the frustration of community leaders who are forced to make decisions without enough research and evidence.

An informational session on diabetes will be presented by Jay Desai, an epidemiologist with the Minnesota Department of Health’s diabetes program, Sept. 17 at the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey Institute.