District 61B Candidate Profile: Susan Allen

Her two chief DFL competitors are the veterans of several campaigns and leadership roles with the local DFL committee. However, political newcomer Susan Allen likes to distinguish herself as the candidate who will be "a voice for those left out" of the traditional political process.

"I think people see themselves in me," she said, citing many years of activism in the Native American and LGBT communities. She said she understands how to engage the many ethnic communities with Minnesota's House District 61B.

"Minority communities are sort of insular," she explained. "It’s difficult for them to go outside those communities because they face a lot of discrimination, and they’re afraid they’ll lose their identities."

She plans to put that knowledge to use to increase voter participation—a critical issue for Democrats in the 2012 election.

"You get there (the legislature), but you can only do so much unless you have people—voters—voting in large number saying what they want to get done," she said.

Despite her lack of formal credentials, Allen has been tapped by some big names in the area's DFL party: City Councilmember Robert Lilligren, state representatives Karen Clark and Rena Moran, state Sen. Scott Dibble and the LGBT rights organization OutFront.

Along with increasing voter participation, Allen said she is focused on equal healthcare access, leveraging federal matching grants for infrastructure development—a key issue for labor unions in the building trades—education funding and pushing for a new tax structure that taxes services and increases taxes on the wealthy.