A federal appeals court panel declined Thursday to overturn a new union for thousands of Minnesota personal care attendants who assist the disabled and elderly in home-based settings.

Both sides find ways to claim victory after the Supreme Court's ruling in the Illinois home care union case.

A pair of lawsuits seeking to invalidate legislation that allows in-home child-care providers to join unions were dismissed by a federal judge on Sunday. U.S. District Court Judge Michael Davis determined that the claims were not yet "ripe" because any potential damages have not yet occurred.

A pair of lawsuits seeking to thwart legislation allowing day care providers to unionize will be taken up in U.S. District Court on Thursday morning.

The Service Employees International Union announced on Thursday that it is backing Betsy Hodges in the Minneapolis mayoral contest. The two-term city council member is seeking to replace R.T. Rybak, who is not running for a fourth term.

Rep. Michael Nelson, DFL-Brooklyn Park, and Sen. Chris Eaton, DFL-Brooklyn Center, will carry legislation that would allow thousands of home-care workers to seek union representation.

Key question: Does Minnesota want to be more like Massachusetts or Utah?

A group of personal care attendants want state law changed so that they can seek union representation. Dozens of home health care workers and the clients that they take care of announced the drive during a press conference at Dunning Recreation Center in St. Paul on Wednesday. They are working with the Service Employees International Union on a campaign that could affect roughly 15,000 to 20,000 workers.

GOP House leaders are warning Gov. Mark Dayton not to unilaterally unionize home daycare providers through an executive order. In a letter sent on Wednesday, Speaker Kurt Zellers and Majority Leader Matt Dean argue that such a step would violate the state constitution by usurping legislative powers.

Jon Youngdahl, who served as campaign manager on former attorney general Mike Hatch's 2006 gubernatorial campaign, has been named chief of staff for the Service Employees International Union. Since 2007, Youngdahl has been the labor union's political director.