The first meeting of a session usually kicks off with an ice breaker, something like asking each member to share something surprising about their district. In other meetings, they share challenges or opportunities in their districts. “What was interesting about that was, going around the room, you realized that we’re all having similar challenges in our districts, rural or urban,” Robbins says of a common divide across Minnesota politics.
In March’s meeting, the caucus took a different approach to the food element with a classic Minnesota hot dish potluck. “You see a different side of people when they bring grandma’s recipe,” she adds.