Category: general

To place an obituary, please email the following information to obits@pioneerpress.com. At this time, obituary submissions cannot be made through our website. For any questions, feel free to contact our obituary desk at 651-228-5263.

**General Information Required:**
– Your full name
– Address (City, State, Zip Code)
– Phone number
– Alternate phone number (if available)

**Obituary Specifications:**
– Name of the deceased
– Obituary text
– Photo in JPEG or PDF format is preferable; TIF and other file types are accepted. We will contact you if there are any issues with the photo.
– Ad run dates
– Discounts are available for multi-day runs but must be scheduled at the first run date to apply.
– If a photo is included, it must be used on all days to qualify for the discount. Contact us for more information.

**Policies:**

*Verification of Death*
To publish an obituary, we require the name and phone number of the funeral home or cremation society handling the arrangements. We must contact them during business hours to verify the death.
– If the deceased’s body was donated to the University of Minnesota Anatomy Bequest Program or a similar program, provide their phone number for verification.
– Please allow sufficient time for us to contact them, especially during limited weekend hours.
– Alternatively, a death certificate is acceptable for verification; only one of these options is necessary.

*Guestbook and Outside Websites*
We cannot reference other media sources, guestbooks, or obituaries placed elsewhere in print or online. We may include a funeral home website or a family email for contact instead. Please contact us with any questions.

**Obituary Process:**
After submission, we will fax or email a proof for your review prior to publication. The proof includes pricing and scheduled appearance dates.
– Please review the proof carefully and notify us of any errors or changes before publication deadlines.
– We are not responsible for errors after final proofing and publication.
– Changes to online obituaries may be requested through the obituary desk.

**Payment Procedure:**
Pre-payment is required before publication by the specified deadlines. After approving the proof, please call 651-228-5263 to provide payment information.
– Payment by credit card is accepted by phone only due to PCI regulations.
– EFT payments can be made by phone; please provide routing and account numbers.

**Rates:**
– Minimum charge is $162 for the first 12 lines.
– Each additional line after the first 12 is $12. An ad under 12 lines is charged the minimum $162.
– Obituaries over 40 lines receive a 7.5% discount per line.
– A 20% discount applies to both first and second placements for a second run date.
– Place three obituaries and the third ad will be free.
– Each photo published costs $125 per day. For example, 2 photos run on 2 days equals 4 photo charges totaling $500.

**Deadlines:**
Please adhere strictly to deadline times to ensure publication on the requested date.

**Memoriam (Non-Obituary) Requests:**
Unlike obituaries, memoriam submissions are remembrances of a loved one. Rates differ. Please call 651-228-5280 or email memoriams@pioneerpress.com for more information.

**Hours:** Monday–Friday, 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM (Closed weekends and holidays).

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**Gerrymandering and Its Political Impact**

The gerrymandering doom spiral is gaining downward momentum as expected. Virginia is poised to become the second state, after California, where Democrats seek to undo reforms that removed partisan control from redistricting.

In response to Republican power grabs in other states—especially Texas, where the GOP initiated nationwide partisan conflicts this summer to protect its slim House majority—Democrats currently hold six of Virginia’s 11 congressional seats, reflecting the state’s evenly divided electorate.

By calling a special session, Democrats aim to gain an additional two or three districts through aggressive map redrawing.

California’s redistricting effort will be decided by voters through a special ballot initiative on November 4. Democrats there, who consider themselves defenders of democracy, argue that the only acceptable response to Texas’s “election rigging” is to rig elections themselves. Polls indicate that more than 60% of likely voters support this logic, making Proposition 50 appear likely to pass.

Last month, North Carolina Republicans pushed through a map expected to help their party gain one more seat in next year’s midterms. Missouri Republicans did the same earlier.

Despite confident claims by partisan analysts about redistricting’s effect on Congress’s balance, the outcome remains uncertain. Texas’s efforts might not yield enough seats to stop a possible Democratic wave, nor is a Democratic wave guaranteed, even if historically typical.

Recent political trends suggest caution, especially as young Hispanic and African American men have increasingly moved toward Republicans.

Texas’s mid-decade gerrymandering could backfire on the GOP, considering California is more solidly blue than Texas is red. It could also result in a wash, with broader political trends playing a larger role.

There is also potential for voter backlash against overt partisanship, which could boost Democrats in Texas, where competitive gubernatorial and Senate races loom.

Ultimately, the biggest losers in these changes are voters. By the midterms next year, there will be fewer competitive districts where candidates must genuinely appeal to Americans, particularly independents.

Credit goes to Republican legislators in Indiana and Kansas who have resisted national pressure to gerrymander their states—at least for now. It is unfortunate that many others, including Democrats in Virginia, compromise principles for perceived short-term partisan gain.

— The Washington Post
https://www.twincities.com/2025/11/02/other-voices-gerrymanderings-slippery-slope/