Auditor switches back to surname Anderson; Now divorced, she drops `Awada'

Star Tribune: Newspaper of the Twin Cities (Minneapolis, MN)

Author: Dane Smith

Minnesota's state auditor, who appeared on the ballot in 2002 as Patricia— Anderson— Awada—, announced Monday that her surname henceforth will be Anderson alone, the result of a divorce from Michael Awada that was finalized Friday.

``It's difficult for a woman in politics who is divorced,'' Anderson said, noting that some female politicians, such as former Secretary of State Joan Growe and U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum, chose to keep their ex-husbands' names after getting divorced. ``It's going to be a new thing,'' Anderson said, adding that she expects to seek reelection in 2006.

Anderson, 37, said that she was married for 13 years and that ``the majority of my life I've been Pat Anderson.''

As an Eagan City Council member for eight years and mayor of Eagan for four years, Anderson always appeared on the ballot as Pat Awada. That is a well-known name in the southern part of the metro area, partly because of the long-established Awada's Restaurant south of downtown St. Paul, owned by her in-laws.

Anderson raised some eyebrows in 2002 when - in a bid for a statewide office, for which a Scandinavian surname has long been considered an advantage in Minnesota - she ran as Patricia Anderson Awada. She told the Star Tribune in 2002 that she had used her birth name in the past at times and that she wasn't introducing it to appeal to those of Scandinavian heritage.

The change from Pat to Patricia was a response to some confusion about her gender, Anderson said at the time. ``There are some people who think I'm a guy. . . . I didn't want people to be confused,'' she said. But Anderson, an often-outspoken and conservative Republican, also said at the time that her use of Anderson should not be taken as a feminist statement.

Last spring, her husband, Michael, was arrested on a gross misdemeanor charge of hitting their teenage son with a chair during an argument. The charge was dismissed on the condition that father and son sought counseling. In early December, Anderson announced that she and her husband were divorcing.

The state auditor position is one of five constitutional offices in Minnesota and generally is considered the third-most powerful, behind governor and attorney general. The office has broad responsibility for auditing and overseeing the financial records of cities, counties and other local governments.