Minnesota officials release state unemployment dip in last report before next month's election

Minnesota has added 7,200 jobs, pushing the state's unemployment rate down to 4.1 percent.

State officials announced the September gains in the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate Thursday. The rate is at an eight-year low, and is down from 4.3 percent in August. Officials also say August added 2,700 more jobs than initially reported.

Professional and business services led job gains in September, while government jobs declined most.

The figures were released in the final leg of an election campaign focused on the economy. Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton has been campaigning on Minnesota's relatively low rate, while his Republican challenger, Jeff Johnson, says Minnesota's job growth doesn't match other states.

The overall national unemployment rate is 5.9 percent.