To the surprise of no one, state Sen. Terri Bonoff, D-Minnetonka, officially officially entered the race for the Third District congressional seat currently held by Republican Jim Ramstad.

Surrounded by friends and family, in a well-staged event at Hopkins High School, Bonoff paid tribute to Ramstad, described herself as a fiscal moderate/conservative and social liberal, and roughed out a few policy positions namely…

Her first priority in Congress will be to end the war in Iraq and bring the troops home (she didn’t say much about how or when, and emphasized the need for an orderly transition to Iraqi self-rule);

On Iraq and on foreign policy generally, Bonoff advocated diplomacy over military force, (when asked after her speech, Bonoff said she favors opening U.S. diplomatic relations with Iran);

Endorsed universal health insurance, without specifying a plan, but said it shouldn’t be done of the backs of business. (When asked after the speech how to make progress toward that goal, it definitely didn’t sound like she was a single-payer advocate, but favored a mixture of subsidies and tax incentives, leading gradually to a universal mandate);

Vowed to pay down the national debt. Bonoff said said securing the fiscal future of the next generation is the key to real security. (When asked after, she didn’t specify any specific spending cuts or tax increases. She said the idea of allowing the Bush tax cuts to expire on the wealthiest Americans should remain “on the table.” As for spending cuts, she gave examples of how she found redundancies in state spending and promised to look for similar efficiencies in federal spending).

An overview, with little detail, of her issue positions is available on her campaign website.

As is now traditional for such occasions, officials of the Minnesota GOP attended the event and passed out a press release attacking the newly-declared candidate, in this case for being a phony moderate who supported higher taxes as a state senator. GOP spokester Mark Drake also impuged Bonoff’s claim to moderation by pointing that she has the supaport of Emily’s List. Emily’s List generally endorses pro-choice women candidates. Bonoff is pro-choice. I’m not in a position to fact-check any of these claims for this post.

As far as I know, Bonoff has only one declared opponent for the DFL nomination, Iraq war vet Ashwin Madia. Bonoff pledged to abide by the party endorsement, which she is expected to receive. Edina Mayor James Hovland, who is also considering getting into the race, was unavailable today to update his plans.

On the Republican side, state Rep. Erik Paulsen is in a commanding position to receive the Republican nomination, unless Ramstad changes his mind and decides to seek another term. Ramstad has been considering pleas by the National Republican Congressional Committee to reconsider his decision to retire, but as time passes it seems less likely he will change his plans.

Bonoff was a business executive before taking time off to raise her teenaged children and become a community activist. That led to a 2005 candidacy in a special Senate election in the suburban District 43. She was reelected to a full term in 2006, and does not have to give up her Senate seat to run for Congress.

University of Minnesota political scientist Kathryn Pearson said Bonoff meets the classic definition of a “quality candidate” and may have some advantages based on the amount of money she can raise (Emily’s endorsement is very big in that picture) and the fact that nationally, the Republicans have so many more endangered seats to defend.