We're less than two months from Election Day. Increasingly in recent years there have been allegations about election fraud, often seemingly because some people distrust electronic ballot counting machines — even though studies have shown the results with the widely used technology is more accurate than hand-counting. Against this backdrop, it seems appropriate to ask how — regardless of political affiliation — we can trust the guardrails we have in place to prevent errors or fraud and uphold America's long history and beacon to the world of the peaceful transition of power?

Can you hear the school bells? Just around the corner is another year of busses and books and all the excitement and anxiety that comes with it for kids ages pre-K to 12th grade. The St. Cloud Area School District is no exception. As one of the largest districts in the state — both in terms of students and the geographical area it covers — 742 faces challenges on multiple levels. It is a magnet for special education students, many of whom transfer in from other areas that may not be as equipped to deal with the needs those students bring. And, with perhaps one-third of public school students now having some East African connection in their immediate or recent family history, St. Cloud educates more English Language Learners than many other districts. These come at a consequence of expense and have an impact on the overall academic scores the schools achieve. With the general election now barely more than two months away, we asked our GOP and DFL columnists to address the role of public education and how support can be provided that also will help improve academic outcomes.

Immigration has become a polarizing, lightning-rod issue for Minnesotans in the wake of Operation Metro Surge, the protests that accompanied it and the shooting deaths of two citizens in January. We asked our DFL and GOP columnists to share their thoughts about what happened, the resulting response and what role immigration reform should take going forward.

(St. Cloud LIVE photo by Trent Abrego)

Many people are struggling to keep pace with inflation, affecting what they want to buy and the challenge of keeping up with it in their paychecks. The recent U.S. incursion into Iran and the trouble in the Strait of Hormuz has frazzled gas and food prices, though impact on that is federal in nature and somewhat out of our control. Right here in St. Cloud, a startling number of students in District 742 are homeless, property taxes have spiraled upward, housing is increasingly out of reach for many prospective homeowners and child care is the most expensive budget item for many. We asked Democrats and Republicans to offer relief solutions to address affordability.

(Forum News Service photo)

Fraud, waste and abuse has blown up into a major issue in Minnesota in the past year. Accusations have flown from both sides of the political spectrum, some causing a furor over increasingly large and sometimes unbelievable numbers of dollars funneled to people who shouldn't have received it, and others questioning the magnitude and defending legitimate recipients of federal and state human services funding. Within the past few weeks, FBI agents carried out search warrants in the Twin Cities. Locally, according to the Stearns County Sheriff's Office, fraud prevention efforts have thwarted $1.23 million in fraudulent claims in the past two years, but the scope of what may not have been found isn't clear. In early March, a St. Cloud man pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud after his daycare operation received more than $6 million in public funds and he acknowledged that at least several hundred thousand dollars had been misused to buy a semi truck and sent to individuals in Kenya. Now the question becomes: How do we insure this doesn't happen anymore while still providing a social safety net for those in need?

(Photo by Mary Murphy / Forum News Service)

Representatives from the Senate District 14 DFL and GOP parties will discuss how to promote public safety and determine the role of gun regulation reform in the wake of high-profile events last year, including the shooting of several Minnesota lawmakers and an attack on Minneapolis' Annunciation Church, in this month's expression of Political Perspectives.

(Forum Communications photo contributed by Lake Superior Violent Offender Task Force)

St. Cloud LIVE Editor Kevin Allenspach meets with representatives from the Senate District 14 DFL and GOP parties to discuss the creation of Political Perspectives. The monthly columns will address a topic of concern to Central Minnesotans in an effort to help inform voters leading up to the mid-term elections in November.

(Photo by Trent Abrego / St. Cloud LIVE)