Democrat Maureen Reed dropped out of the 6th Congressional District race on Sunday, leaving one DFLer to take on Republican U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann this fall.

Reed said in a message to supporters that a prolonged primary battle against state. Sen. Tarryl Clark, the DFL-endorsed candidate, would only help Bachmann in her bid for a third term. Bachmann, a Stillwater resident and darling of the “tea party” movement and conservative talk show circuit, already has raised about $2.4 million.

“I feel that it is time for the DFL to unify behind one candidate in this race,” Reed said.

Reed, a physician and former head of the University of Minnesota’s Board of Regents, is a former candidate for lieutenant governor on the Independence Party ticket. The Grant resident routinely emphasized her centrist credentials during her campaign.

Clark, of St. Cloud, praised Reed as a “spirited competitor” and said they shared the same goal — “taking back our communities, from Waite Park to Blaine to Stillwater.”

“We both saw that Washington, and our current member of Congress, are simply not working for us,” Clark said in a statement.

The race is expected to be among the most expensive House races in the country. Reed and Clark have raised more than $1 million each.

The National Republican Congressional Committee pounced on Reed’s announcement, saying in a statement that Republicans should thank her for bowing out and guaranteeing Bachmann an easy win against Clark this fall.

“With her penchant for backing massive job-killing tax increases and cheering on the reckless Obama agenda, Clark’s liberal views put her far outside the mainstream among voters from St. Cloud to Stillwater,” said committee spokesman Tom Erickson.

Megan Boldt can be reached at 651-228-5495.