Who we are: Warriors Vote is a student-run, Winona State University (WSU) non-partisan campaign, which supports the President Olson’s commitment to “ask every student to vote.” Warriors Vote’s mission is to educate and share resources with our fellow students on the voting process in the upcoming election. We are partnering with WSU Faculty Senate’s Government Relations Committee and the WSU American Democracy Project. As part of our initiative, we are hosting a local candidate forum for candidate introductions and responses to student generated questions. The expected audience is WSU students, faculty, staff, and the Winona community. Due to the current pandemic and limitations on large gatherings, this forum is held virtually and asynchronously.
What we did: We invited every candidate, in the Winona, Minnesota region on the November 2020 ballot, to send in an audio or video clip of themselves which will be uploaded to Warrior Votes YouTube Channel (List of invited candidates is provided on this page). We understand we can cannot control which candidates respond with videos. We posted all the candidate videos without editing the candidate portion of the video. We did add a disclaimer and trigger warning to all videos. The views of the candidates are their own and not of the coordinating groups. Candidate points of view may be triggering.
What the videos may include: Each video should be limited to no more than 30 minutes. The audio or video clip should contain a brief introduction of the candidate and their platform, and answers to any or all of the following questions (submitted by Winona State University students):
Tell us about yourself and the experience you bring to this position (5 minutes).
Why is it important for Winona State University students to vote?
What are your perspectives on higher education and Winona State University and its place, contribution in southeast Minnesota and the Winona community?
What will you do for the environment?
What are your views on immigration and its impact on both the local and national economy?
What will you do to work for social equity and racial justice?
Contact Information: If you have questions about the process please email warriorsvote@gmail.com.
This project was coordinated by:
Warriors Vote, WSU Faculty Senate, WSU American Democracy Project
Visit the Warriors Vote Instagram page for updates and messages on the project. This includes Instagram takeovers by Warrior students and an important message from President Scott Olson.
Additional information is available on the Warriors Vote Facebook page and/or Twitter feed.
Warriors Vote! Natalie Nowatzke Profile: https://winonastatewarriors.com/news/2020/9/25/url.aspx
Warriors Vote Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/Warriors-Vote-103512204815650/
Warriors Vote Twitter - https://twitter.com/WarriorsVote
Warriors Vote Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/warriorsvote/
Winona, Minnesota regional candidates invited to contribute a video:
City Mayor (Winona)
Mayor (Winona) |
Jovy Rockey |
NONPARTISAN |
Mayor (Winona) |
Scott D. Sherman |
NONPARTISAN |
City Council at Large (Winona)
At Large (Winona) |
Aaron Repinski |
NONPARTISAN |
At Large (Winona) |
Paul Schollmeie |
NONPARTISAN |
City Council Ward 1 (Winona)
Ward 1 (Winona) |
Steve Young |
NONPARTISAN |
Ward 1 (Winona) |
Christopher G. Meie |
NONPARTISAN |
City Council Ward 3 (Winona)
Ward 3 (Winona) |
Will Gibson |
NONPARTISAN |
Ward 3 (Winona) | NONPARTISAN |
U.S. House of Representatives - District 1
U.S. Representative CD1 | GRASSROOTS - LEGALIZE CANNABIS | |
U.S. Representative CD1 | REPUBLICAN | |
U.S. Representative CD1 | DEMOCRATIC-FARMER-LABOR |
Minnesota State Senate District 28
State Senator District 28 |
Jeremy R. Miller |
REPUBLICAN |
State Senator District 28 | DEMOCRATIC-FARMER-LABOR |
Minnesota State House District 28A
Gene P. Pelowski Jr. |
DEMOCRATIC-FARMER-LABOR |
Winona County Commissioners
County Commissioner District 3
County Commissioner District 3 |
Steven E. Jacob |
NONPARTISAN |
County Commissioner District 4
County Commissioner District 4 |
F. Craig Zeche |
NONPARTISAN |
County Commissioner District 4 |
Greg (Skip) Olson |
NONPARTISAN |
SCHOOL BOARD ISD#861:
School Board District 3 (ISD #861) |
Stephanie Smith |
NONPARTISAN |
School Board District 3 (ISD #861) |
Tesla Mitchel |
NONPARTISAN |
School Board District 4 (ISD #861) |
Jim Schul |
NONPARTISAN |
School Board District 4 (ISD #861) |
Torry Moore |
NONPARTISAN |
School Board District 5 (ISD #861) |
Tina Lehnertz |
NONPARTISAN |
School Board District 5 (ISD #861) |
Kenneth Kersting |
NONPARTISAN |
Soil and Water Supervisors District 2, 3, 5
Soil and Water Supervisor District 2 | Joshua Dean Elsing | NONPARTISAN |
Soil and Water Supervisor District 3 | Bill Rowekamp | NONPARTISAN |
Soil and Water Supervisor District 5 | Andy Kronebusch | NONPARTISAN |