State Sen. Julianne Ortman on Saturday received the encouragement she sought for her U.S. Senate bid from Republican activists.
In a non-binding straw poll, Ortman, of Chanhassen, received 146 votes, coming in tops among the GOP faithful gathered in Blaine.
"I think it's encouragement. I think people vote and say: 'keep going,'" Ortman said before the results were announced.
Businessman and first time candidate Mike McFadden came in a distant second with 85 votes. The two were followed by late entrant and GOP activist Harold Shudlick (50 votes), St. Louis County Commissioner Chris Dahlberg (49 votes), state Rep. Jim Abeler (44 votes) and former Senate candidate Monti Moreno (10 votes)
