Cottage Grove resident Chad Rediske to seat GOP nod to challenge Sieben

Cottage Grove resident Chad Rediske will seek the GOP endorsement this weekend to run against state Sen. Katie Sieben, who represents Hastings.

Rediske, 39, said Thursday he will try to unseat Sieben, a Cottage Grove Democrat, in his first bid for public office after years of interest in politics.

“I want to see the slowing in the rate of growth of government,” Rediske said. “I want more fiscal responsibility for the state, I want more personal accountability.”

Running against Sieben for the District 54 seat will be a challenge, Rediske acknowledged, but said he has had a passion for politics and is motivated.

“It’s definitely not going to be easy,” he said. “Fundraising is going to be a big priority.”

Sieben two years ago beat St. Mary’s Point resident Karin Housley in a close race. Legislative redistricting that changed the south Washington County-area district number from 57 to 54 also excludes Housley’s hometown. She had planned to run against Sieben again. Rediske said he will seek Housley’s backing in his endorsement bid at the GOP’s district convention Saturday in Hastings.

A Marine Corps veteran, Rediske is married with three children. He is an information technology analyst for Express Scripts, a pharmaceutical home delivery and benefit management company.

Rediske said it is likely that there will be multiple candidates vying for the GOP endorsement for the Senate seat and for the House District 54A seat. Cottage Grove City Council member Derrick Lehrke announced his Republican bid for that House seat earlier this week.

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