Staff photo by Fritz Busch Counting Minnesota governor straw poll votes at the Sleepy Eye Republican Caucus in the Sleepy Eye Public School cafeteria, from left, Carol Wendland, Julie Schumacher, Marlys Lochner and Nori Houlson.

SLEEPY EYE — Sleepy Eye native and Minnesota candidate for governor Dr. Scott Jensen received 53 of 95 total straw poll votes at the Brown County Republican caucuses in New Ulm, Sleepy Eye and Springfield Tuesday.

At the New Ulm caucus, Jensen received 32 of 54 votes. U.S. Army veteran and corporate executive Kendall Qualls got 10 votes and physician and business owner Dr. Neil Shah got eight votes.

In Sleepy Eye, Jensen received 21 of 30 votes. Minnesota Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka received four votes and small business owner Mike Murphy got three votes.

In Springfield, Gazelka received six of 11 total votes. Three voters were undecided.

Brown County Republican Party Chairman Greg Bartz was reelected to the post he has held for a long time. He and Wayne Pelzel read candidate letters while caucus-goers met at precinct tables and selected delegates, alternates and party planks.

Bartz said it is not yet known what Minnesota House and Congressional District Brown County will be in yet this year.

In New Ulm, the Republicans gathered at the New Ulm Event Center. According to the Governor straw poll conducted at the caucus, 54 people attended the GOP caucus.

Brown County GOP finance chair Scott Waldner said turnout this year was about the same as in 2020. Waldner said he was happy with this level of turnout on such a cold night.

The main pieces business conducted at the GOP caucus was the Governor Preference vote. This was New Ulm GOP members’ chance to recommend a candidate for 2022 Governor race to run against incumbent DFL Gov. Tim Walz.

Of the six candidates seeking the GOP nomination, Dr. Scott Jensen was the overwhelming choice, taking 32 of the 54 votes cast. Kendall Quall came in second with 10 votes and Neil Shah took third with eight votes. Paul Gazelka received two votes, Mike Murphy received one vote and Michelle Benson received no votes. There was a single undecided vote.

Jensen is a 1973 Sleepy Eye High School graduate with an undergraduate degree in physiology. He attended Luther Theological Seminary before earning a University of Minnesota medical degree. He was elected to the Minnesota Senate in 2016.

In his letter to the precinct caucuses, Jensen said he was running for governor because “we need a fearless leader who listens, leads and talks straight to Minnesota.”

Jensen has spoken out against Minnesota’s COVID-19 lockdowns and vaccine mandates. He also promises to be an advocate for safety in the streets, reform broken education system and create a better economy.

These issues were important among the GOP caucus goers. The COVID mandates and school masking were prominent issues among those attending the caucus. Border security, the economy, inflations, school choice and election integrity were also cited as top issues.

The Brown County Republican Convention begins at 9 a.m., Saturday, March 19 at the Brown County Rural Electrical Association Auditorium several miles north of Sleepy Eye.

The First Congressional District Convention begins at 10 a.m. Saturday, April 23 at the Mayo Civic Center Auditorium,

The Minnesota Republican Convention will be held Friday and Saturday, May 13-14 at the Mayo Civic Center, 30 Civic Center Drive, Rochester.