By Mark Fischenich

Free Press Staff Writer

MANKATO — Joe Kunkel was a late-comer to the group that thought Tim Walz had a strong chance to beat Gil Gutknecht.

A political science professor at Minnesota State University, Kunkel said the professor in him maintained that the congressional election system is broken, that incumbents are virtually unbeatable, that an average person can’t win a federal race in today’s political reality.

“It was only a third-tier race, I thought,” Kunkel said. “... About two weeks ago, I became a believer.”

Former Congressman Tim Penny, who represented the 1st District for 12 years before retiring in 1994, was skeptical only until he met Walz. Penny, who talks politics with an informal group of friends on Saturday mornings at a Waseca cafe, said Walz stopped by one of the gatherings early in the campaign.

“Lots of people think they can run for Congress, and lots people don’t know what they’re getting into,” Penny said. “Walz didn’t know what he was getting into. ... But I remember thinking from the start, this guy could be a strong candidate and he could certainly do the job if elected.”

Judi Gauch, a 65-year-old DFL Party activist from North Mankato, has been working on campaigns since passing out literature for John Kennedy in 1960. She’s watched a lot of campaigns and been to a lot of “victory” parties.

“This has got to be No. 1 for me,” said Gauch, whose bad knees and bad feet usually send her home by around 11 p.m., even on good election nights for Democrats. “But I found some Ibuprofen in my purse and kept going (until 1 a.m.).”

So did hundreds of other giddy DFLers. It was the polar opposite of what local Democrats were used to in recent congressional races. For six straight elections, Gutknecht had beaten their candidates — usually soundly.

“I think Democrats were a bit dispirited,” said Penny, a Democrat while in Congress but now a member of the Independence Party.

Walz managed to change that, to bring optimism and enthusiasm, according to local political observers. That was probably the key to his success in doing the near impossible — beating a long-term incumbent congressman who wasn’t directly involved in any scandal.

“He got people of all ages fired up,” Penny said.

But his ability to energize young volunteers, including many he’d taught or coached at West High School, was obvious.

“If you’re a teacher who actually inspires your kids, God love you,” Penny said. “That’s powerful — even more-so if it reaches younger voters because we’ve got to get the next generation to believe in this system.”