For his encore, Marty Seifert doesn’t want to talk as much about politics. The former Republican House minority leader launched his second bid for the governor’s office on Thursday, more than three years after activists denied him endorsement in the 2010 race. At kickoff events, he highlighted his work with the Avera Marshall Foundation and selling real estate in the years since that failed campaign.

Democrats had an outstanding night on Tuesday. They won back control of the Minnesota House and Senate, picked up a congressional seat, and defeated two contentious amendments that most political observers expected to prevail.

When it comes to spending by Minnesota’s political parties, the state DFL has emerged as the No. 1 player in the 2012 battle for control of Legislature.

On Thursday morning state Reps. Carolyn McElfatrick and Tom Anzelc appeared on the “Making Sausage” radio program on KAXE (FM 91.7) in Grand Rapids. They fielded questions about the budget, taxes and the proposed constitutional amendments.

For the last 10 years, state Rep. Larry Howes, R-Walker, has lived at the northern end of his north central Minnesota district. When the redistricting maps were announced last winter, the powerful chairman of the House Capital Investment Committee found himself on the southern fringe of a new district.

The Senate District 49 race has resulted in the largest haul so far with more than $100,000 in political contributions. Campaign finance reports have revealed this and a lot more, including some notable financial mismatches as well as challengers bringing in more than incumbents.

The North Central States Regional Council of Carpenters is backing 58 DFLers and 23 Republicans in House and Senate races across the state. The union's first round of endorsements includes 14 challengers -- all DFLers.

The International Union of Operating Engineers Local 49 announced that it's backing 16 GOP incumbents and 10 DFL incumbents in its first round of endorsements. The list is noteworthy because of its bipartisan mix, which is rare for most labor unions.

There are just four districts across the state where incumbent legislators from opposing parties are squaring off in the general election. But three of those contests are in a single central Minnesota Senate district that stretches from Iron Range mining towns in the north to the Pillsbury State Forest in the south.

On Tuesday hundreds of labor unions, business groups, lobbying shops and other independent political organizations submitted reports detailing how much money they’ve raised so far this year, what they’ve already spent and how much they have in the bank.