U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum will be in Tunisia to monitor Sunday’s election there, as voters in the Arab country choose representatives for the new Constituent Assembly, following the ouster of the longtime president earlier this year.

McCollum, as a member of the House Appropriations Committee, will be there to check on how U.S. aid for the elections is spent.

Meanwhile, former Gov. Tim Pawlenty will be in Tunisia for the elections, too, as a representative of the Republican Party’s International Republican Institute, with promotes international democracy.

McCollum joked to MPR about the two politically diverse Minnesotans making the trek to Tunisia:

“Two kids from South St. Paul High School, out paving the way for democracy!” she said.