The race for Austin mayor as officially expanded to include a third candidate.

Zeke Dahl, 32 and a recent transplant from California, filed paperwork Friday afternoon and will run against incumbent Tom Stiehm and challenger Marian Clennon.

While only being a Minnesota resident for six months, Dahl has relatives in town and is familiar with Austin. Unemployed, Dahl said he is making this run at mayor his only focus.

“Right now this is my living,” Dahl said by phone Saturday. “This is a calling for me to do something bigger than myself.”

Dahl’s overall goal as mayor would be to tap as many resources in Austin as possible.

“Mayor to me is a full-time job,” he said. “It’s selling Austin. Getting the word out that this is a good place to go to school, to raise a family.”

Another goal, however is keeping Austin’s tax dollars in Austin. He said too many tax dollars are going to the state.

Dahl said he wants to bring different alternatives to the table to keep that money here including the possibility of a lawsuit, the basis of which he draws from a parallel in California.

“San Diego joined with Los Angeles and Orange County in a lawsuit against the state for taking too much money,” Dahl explained. “I just want to bring different ways to do things. A lawsuit isn’t always a bad thing if it helps keep money here.”