Get to know Minot District 5 House candidates

With Election Day right around the corner, KMOT spoke with all three candidates from the District 5 House race.

Here is what you need to know about these candidates before heading to the polls on Tuesday:

First is Zachary Raknerud, a Democratic candidate. This is Raknerud's first time running for office. He is a North Dakota native from the small town of Northwood, went to the University of North Dakota and then moved to Minot in 2016. The primary campaign of the 2016 Presidential election drew Raknerud into politics.

He supports Measure 3 and wants to stop the arrest of adult from using cannabis. He also wants to invest into the working and young people of North Dakota though the Legacy fund and the possibility of a tuition-free trade school.

“First plan of action would be really to be a better representative for Minot, whether it's the allocation of HUB City funding, which I believe was poor, or looking at the cut to the funding formula for the Minot school district by 75 percent, because we received federal dollars to educate children on the Air Force Base. Those two things are really, put Minot in a difficult position. So I would work with other legislators to undo that,” said Zachary Raknerud.

Our second candidate is Rep. Scott Louser, R-Minot. Louser has lived his whole life in Minot. He's a Minot High grad and two-time graduate from Minot State University. He has been a Minot District 5 Representative for four sessions and says he has built a lot of strong relationships with colleagues in the House and the Senate. Louser wants to see more transparency in government. He wants candidates at the local level to declare a party to give voters more information on their background, and he wants to keep Minot taxes low.

“The flood protection in Minot, that is extremely important to us because it serves two purposes. When we get that funding from the state to finish the flood protection in Minot, that covers the local tax burden that eliminates the local tax burden eventually and it also removes the property owners form having to pay flood insurance in the future,” said Louser.

Finally there is Republican candidate Jay Fisher. He grew up in central North Dakota and has lived in Minot for 40 years now. Fisher has a strong background rooted in value-added agriculture, and he is an agronomist by training. For 37 years, he was the Director of the NDSU Research Extension center. He said he believes we can do more with the agriculture and energy around Minot to help grow the economy. Fisher wants to lay a good foundation for the future generations, just as people before him have done.

“We need to continue to build and grow our infrastructure. A good supply of water like NAS and all forms of infrastructure, the transportation. And then of course as our city grows and rebuilds after the flood, we need flood protection. We continue to have a great education system here but it needs to be funded,” said Fisher.