By Mike Kaszuba

Wearing a pink t-shirt, and a pink campaign button supporting Tom Emmer, Rep. Mary Liz Holberg said Friday that Emmer had been mischaracterized in the media as an "angry person."

"He's real. He's genuine," she said, standing at the state Republican convention in downtown Minneapolis. "He's not an angry person. . .he's actually a heck of a lot of fun."

Holberg, who said she was an early supporter of Emmer, R-Delano, said the rivalry in the Minnesota House between Emmer and Rep. Marty Seifert, R-Marshall, his main rival for Friday's Republican gubernatorial endorsement, has been closely watched by their colleagues, "If you noticed how they vote, they almost always vote the same," she said.

Occasionally, said Holberg, R-Lakeville, she has watched both Emmer and Seifert hold back on casting their votes until they see how the other is voting.

"It was a super easy choice for me," she said of backing Emmer, whom she said would be endorsed in four ballots.