Two years ago Foung Hawj was an also-ran in the Senate District 67 contest. In a nine-candidate DFL primary field, he finished with 10 percent of the vote — more than 20 points behind the winner, former St. Paul Police Chief John Harrington.

If the level of political activity on St. Paul's East Side is any indication, voter turnout in Senate District 67 will not be low. At intersections all over the district, there are people holding signs promoting Cha Yang, Foung Hawj and other challengers in the nine-candidate DFL field.

With primary voting less than 72 hours away, House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher was out on the campaign trail Saturday attempting to motivate the DFL faithful. She attended a rally at the offices of TakeAction Minnesota with state legislative candidates Rena Moran and Vang Lor.

The 201 legislative seats on this November's general election ballot include 23 races featuring intra-party challenges that will be settled in Tuesday's partisan primary.

TakeAction Minnesota's endorsement contest in Senate District 67 was expected to be tight with nine candidates vying for the group's backing. But Vang Lor swamped the field on the first ballot, garnering 84 percent of the votes cast on Saturday.

While the gubernatorial campaigns and the legislative caucuses are attracting most of the money and attention in the current election cycle, legislative candidates in competitive districts are also getting some measure of love from the PAC donors who have weighed in with their first finance reports of 2010.

State Sen. Mee Moua's unexpected decision not to seek a third term at the Capitol set off a political frenzy in the St. Paul district that she represents. Ultimately nine DFL candidates jumped into the fray, setting up a confusing August 10 primary. Look for a longer piece about the contest on PIM's web site later today, but here's thumbnail sketches of the contenders:

St. Paul Police Chief John Harrington filed today to run for the state Senate seat being vacated by Mee Moua. He is the fifth DFL candidate to officially join the race to represent St. Paul's East Side.