AP and staff reports

Moments after multimillionaire Mark Dayton was declared the winner in the DFL primary for U.

Wednesday, September 13, 2000

Moments after multimillionaire Mark Dayton was declared the winner in the DFL primary for U.S. Senate, the real battle began.

Incumbent Republican Rod Grams went on the offensive, painting Dayton as a free-spending liberal.

"Mark, nothing is free – especially when it comes from Washington," Grams said in a speech to supporters, after his own easy primary victory Tuesday.

Dayton, the department store heir who poured $5 million of his personal fortune into an ad blitz that targeted older voters, cruised past three prominent challengers. He outpolled his closest competitor, trial attorney Mike Ciresi, 41 percent to 22 percent.

Dayton brushed aside Grams’ jabs, saying he hoped to focus on issues.

"Sen. Grams is welcome to make his characterizations," Dayton said. "We’ll have eight weeks to discuss the issues."

The race for Grams’ seat is certain to be one of the most closely watched U.S. Senate races in the fall, with Democrats hoping to erase the Republicans’ 54-46 advantage in the chamber.

Joining the pair in November will be Independence Party nominee James Gibson, a software developer. Gibson will have the backing of Gov. Jesse Ventura, who plans to visit college campuses in upcoming weeks, urging students to get out and vote.

Chris Gilbert, a political science professor at Gustavus Adolphus College, said the race to the general election is unlikely to take the high road Dayton hopes for.

"It’s going to be an expensive race," Gilbert said. "I think it’s going to be a nasty race, too."

Dayton didn’t take much time to celebrate after his victory, holding a low-key affair surrounded by friends and family at his Eagan campaign headquarters.

The former state auditor said he learned in 1982 that a primary victory means nothing if he loses in November. He lost the general election that year to then-U.S. Sen. David Durenberger.

On Wednesday, Dayton started making the radio and television interview circuit at 5:30 a.m.

Dayton surprised many with his late, casual entry into the race, stopping by the Capitol press room in April to announce his decision to whomever happened to be there.

He said life changes, including his second divorce and his feeling that his two sons were at an independent age, opened the door for a Senate run.

Dayton saturated the airwaves starting in early summer, far ahead of his opponents, with ads attacking the high price of prescription drugs and proclaiming his support for universal health care.

Gilbert said Dayton could have an unusual advantage in November because his name recognition is nearly as high as Grams’. And the cordial primary battle among DFLers could help, too.

"Four months ago, if we had known there was going to be a four-way contest, the Democrats’ biggest fear would have been that the candidates would have beat each other up so badly, they wouldn’t have been able to put on an effective campaign against Rod Grams," said Steven Smith, a political science professor at the University of Minnesota.

That didn’t happen, leaving Dayton in good shape for the general election, Smith said.

Much of the sparring in the DFL primary came between Dayton and Ciresi, easily the two wealthiest candidates. Both spent about $5 million. But even their battles were mostly limited to issues such as health care – not personal attacks.

Ciresi urged his supporters to "get behind Mark to regain this seat" and not to judge him negatively because he inherited money.