Flanagan, Tafoya clash in first U.S. Senate debate ahead of Election Day

Minnesota U.S. Senate candidates Peggy Flanagan and Michele Tafoya disagreed on a range of issues during an hour-long debate on MPR News Friday. Flanagan, the Democrat, accused Tafoya of trying to distance herself from President Donald Trump after receiving his endorsement earlier this week. Tafoya, the Republican, criticized Flanagan’s record as lieutenant governor and pointed to fraud, education and crime. It was the candidates’ first and only scheduled debate before Election Day on November 3.

More than 200,000 Minnesotans have already voted in this year’s election. The Secretary of State’s office says most of those ballots were returned by mail, while more than 80,000 people have voted in person. Four years ago, about 673,000 Minnesotans cast ballots before Election Day.

The offices of U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon were sent suspicious mail. A threatening letter and white powder addressed to Simon’s office was intercepted before it arrived, and suspicious mail was also intercepted before reaching Klobuchar’s Minnesota office. The FBI is investigating suspicious mailings sent to senators and election offices in multiple states.

Authorities have identified all six people who died in a plane crash in Wisconsin earlier this week. All six were from western Wisconsin. The victims included members of a family returning home from a high school volleyball game in southeastern Wisconsin. Federal aviation officials say the pilot reported ice on the plane’s wings as it passed through a thunderstorm before crashing near Wisconsin Dells.