(bright music) (upbeat music) - [Moderator] Welcome to "Meet the Candidates", the local election forum from Pioneer PBS.

This season, we asked every candidate the same list of questions to learn more about what type of legislator they will be if elected.

In this episode, we will meet candidates from Minnesota House District 9B.

District 9B is made up of the eastern portion of Otter Tail County and the western portion of Douglas County.

Major cities include Perham, New York Mills, and Parkers Prairie.

To find out which district you live in, visit mnvotes.org.

And now, let's meet the candidates.

We'll start with the DFL candidate, Owen Werner.

(upbeat music continues) - Hi, I'm Owen Werner, and I'm running for District 9B in the Minnesota State House legislator.

I come from rural Minnesota where I've lived my entire life.

I grew up in Perham where I graduated and then went down to the cities to get my bachelor's degree in accounting from Hamline University.

Since graduating from Hamline, I decided to move back to Perham, where I now work full-time as an accounting manager at a large manufacturing company.

The reason why I chose to move back to Perham was because there's no place quite like rural Minnesota when it comes to the love and compassion you find from your neighbors.

And I think that is important for everyone to have a sense of community and purpose in their life, to know that they are involved in something greater than themselves, that they should have a community that's willing to stand behind them and help them out when they need, but also to lend a helping hand when they see someone else in need.

(upbeat music) - [Moderator] Why do you want to be the representative for your district?

- So what made me want to become the representative for my district is I've had an interest in politics since high school.

I followed it mainly at the federal level and over the years I've seen how divided we are as a country between political parties.

And so I wanted to get out there and actually meet with people and start to have conversations where I don't look at political parties too much.

I think political parties are not the best formation for elections, and I believe that they only help to divide us.

And when I'm out there meeting with people, it doesn't matter if they're a Democrat or a Republican or an Independent, there's always something we can agree upon and find common ground, and I think that's important.

The other day I had a conversation for two hours with an old Republican voter, and we had a good conversation.

We didn't agree on everything, but we both left that conversation feeling like we've learned something from each other and better understood each other.

And so that's why I want to run, is to be a representation of everyone.

And I think that is crucial in rural Minnesota where we have our own needs that aren't always reflected by those who come from the metro area.

And so that's another reason why I wanted to run, to be a rural voice in Minnesota, so that rural Minnesotans can feel that their voices are heard down at the state capitol.

- [Moderator] What are your priorities for the next legislative session?

- My main priority for the next legislation session if I am elected is to focus on affordability because many people today are struggling and when people are struggling to afford food, housing and healthcare, that leads to bad outcomes.

And I think that a lot of the issues we see today stem from that, where crime comes up when you see poverty come up.

And so to tackle that, I think the best and easiest way to do that is by tackling affordability, where, this is especially a big concern for my generation, where most of us have no hopes of owning a home.

The average first-time home buyer in this country is now 40 years old.

And so that's a whole generation that can't take that first step into becoming financially independent.

And so that's why I want to focus on affordability because these are real issues that affect everyone.

No matter your political party, your religious beliefs or your ethnicity, everyone needs a roof over their head, food on their table and access to healthcare when they need it.

(upbeat music) - [Moderator] What unique perspective do you bring to the Minnesota House?

- I think I bring a unique perspective to the Minnesota State House because I analyze the world through material conditions, because I understand that when people's material conditions worsen, crime goes up because people are more desperate.

They want to work.

They want to be able to afford to live, but oftentimes they just can't.

So they get desperate, and they act irrationally and commit crimes.

And I think the simplest way to stop this is to make living in this country affordable again.

And it is important that we do this, and that we provide basic necessities to our people because that is ultimately the role of the government to provide for its people.

And so when you look at people's material conditions, you understand that people aren't inherently good or inherently bad.

They're just people wanting to get by, wanting to provide for their family.

And when you look at crime and who commits the most amount of crime, it is those who live in poverty, those who struggle to get by.

And when people are struggling, they turn to drugs, crime, gangs, whatever it is.

That's why if you truly care about these issues and want to see them corrected and lower the crime rate, we need to start investing in our people, so that they can afford to live their life.

(upbeat music) - [Moderator] What is your vision for the future of Minnesota?

- My vision for the future of Minnesota is to have Minnesotans come together to actually talk about issues instead of hiding away in their own political camps where they tend to demonize people because they aren't the same political party as them.

Where I think this is wrong that when we actually talk to each other, we find out we have a lot more in common than we do than most people would think.

And so it is important that we normalize having conversations about politics to help close this divide where it doesn't matter what you believe in, you should be able to have a conversation with someone, defend your beliefs, listen to them, and maybe even change your beliefs if you hear something that makes sense to you.

And so that's just the first step.

And then on top of that, we need to get focused on our communities and our neighbors and stop worrying about what these political parties and their consultants want us to talk about.

We need to start talking about issues that matter to everyday people, not just the people at the top, but those at the bottom, the working class, those who work hard every single day and just can't seem to get ahead.

That's what my vision for the future of Minnesota is one where we can all come together and help improve our great state.

(upbeat music) - [Moderator] And now a closing statement.

- For me, politics is about listening, and I think it's important to listen to each and every one of your constituents and to reach out to as many people as possible and hear from them, because the job of the legislator is not to do what the party tells them, it's to do what's best for your constituents in your area.

And so that's why I want to be the voice for rural Minnesotans because I'm willing to listen and have those conversations.

I don't care what your political party is, what your political beliefs are.

I believe that we can find common ground.

We may not agree on everything, and that's okay.

Disagreements are healthy.

They help us grow.

They push us.

They challenge us to seek out more information and to learn to better ourselves.

And so that's why it is so important that we reach out and talk to each other so that we can come together because again, there's no us, there's no them, there's only people and people are what matter.

And when we stop listening to the people is when we see problems occur.

Like we see today where we see our economy heading towards a recession because those at the top take more and more while those at the bottom make less and less.

And that's why it is important that we come together and create a Minnesota that works for every Minnesotan.

(upbeat music) - [Moderator] You can find more information about Owen Werner at wernerforhouse.com.

(upbeat music continues) Next, the Republican candidate: Tom Murphy.

We were unable to schedule an interview with Tom, but you can find more information about him at tommurphymn.com.

Learn more about voting, how to register, and what district you live in by visiting the Minnesota Secretary of State website at mnvotes.org.

Remember, election day is Tuesday, November 3rd.

Thank you for watching "Meet the Candidates" on Pioneer PBS.

(upbeat music continues) (upbeat music continues)