Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer, who prides himself on being a political outsider, has selected longtime Republican activist Annette Meeks as his running mate.
Meeks brings extensive public policy experience leading several conservative think tanks, Emmer said Tuesday at a Capitol news conference.
"We had to find someone ready to govern on the first day," Emmer said. "I am looking for someone who can manage what we propose to do, and that is redesign state government and making sure government works the way it was intended, making sure the excess and the duplication is eliminated."
Meeks said she was honored to join the ticket.
"I am one of those behind-the-scenes people," said Meeks, of Minneapolis. "The more I thought about it, and frankly prayed about it, I realized this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We have a tremendous opportunity to shape state government for the next decade."
Emmer, a state representative from Delano, is in a close contest with fellow state Rep. Marty Seifert, of Marshall, for the Republican endorsement at Friday's state convention in Minneapolis. Both candidates have promised to drop out if the other gets the party's backing. Seifert tapped Anoka County Commissioner Rhonda Sivarajah as his running mate in February.
Meeks likely will help blunt criticism that Emmer has weak knowledge of public policy and the issues facing the state.
Meeks spent nine years at the Center of the American Experiment, where, in 1998, she helped write a review of state government limned by conservative principles.
