These Minnesota elections saw historic firsts — while others missed the chance
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With the 2024 presidential race called, new faces have emerged out of local races, marking several historic firsts in Minnesota.
That includes electing a majority of women to Minnesota’s congressional delegation and Rochester’s first openly-gay City Council president. But there were also some potential firsts that never came to be.
Here’s a roundup of Minnesota’s firsts and would-have-been firsts.
Women hold majority of seats in Minnesota’s congressional delegation for 1st time
For the first time, women will hold a majority of the seats in Minnesota’s congressional delegation with four Democrats and one Republican among them: 2nd District Rep. Angie Craig, 3rd District Rep.-elect Kelly Morrison, 4th District Rep. Betty McCollum, 5th District Rep. Ilhan Omar and 7th District Rep. Michelle Fischbach.
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Along with U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith, there are seven women to the three men in Minnesota’s federal delegation. It was about two decades ago when McCollum was the only woman in the delegation.
Rochester elects first LGBTQ+ city council president
Randy Schubring will step into the Rochester City Council president’s role as the first openly-LGBTQ+ person to occupy the position. He beat Shaun Palmer, who has served on the City Council since 2018, by about four points with more than 51 percent of the vote.
In Schubring’s campaign for the position, he ran on improving access to affordable housing and broadening the local economy.
He currently serves as chair of the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission and will bring his past experience as a Rochester neighborhood association leader and community engagement leader at Mayo Clinic into his new role as the City Council’s head.
“I’m just humbled and honored and proud to have been given this vote of confidence from the citizens of Rochester,” said Schubring. “I’ve lived in Rochester for the last 15 years, and Rochester has always been a welcoming community, and I think this says a lot for our community here.”
Ramsey County commissioner race could have its first Hmong or Native American elected
Voters in Ramsey County voted Kelly Miller as District 7’s new county commissioner by such a narrow margin it will likely face a recount. The position was left vacant after long-time commissioner Victoria Reinhardt announced she was not seeking reelection.
Miller, who is an enrolled member of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, had said she would be the first Native American in Ramsey County to hold a commissioner’s seat. Her opponent, Sarah Yang, also said she would be the first Hmong American elected to the role if she wins the race.
Ramsey County does not track demographics for the position and could not confirm these claims. As of Wednesday, Miller was ahead with a total of 15,437 votes — 28 votes more than Yang.
The margin is so slim that the race meets the publicly funded threshold for a recount according to Casper Hill, a spokesperson for Ramsey County. He explained that Yang would have to write a request for a recount after election officials finish auditing and canvassing the results.
Yang told MPR News on Wednesday evening that she plans to request for a recount.
“This race was extremely close, and a ballot recount is scheduled for the week of November 18. We’ll keep you updated on the results—thank you again for your unwavering support!,” Yang said on Facebook on Thursday morning.
Miller also came out with a statement about the recount on Wednesday evening.
“While we wait for the outcome of the automatic recount, which we expect to prevail, know that I am committed to working every day for all the voters of our district with the passion and dedication that our community deserves. Thank you for trusting me to serve District 7,” said Miller on Facebook.
Miller grew up in Onamia, a city in Mille Lacs County. She is a program director at Interfaith Action and says she has been working closely with Ramsey County to help meet community needs.
Yang, who is Hmong American, was born in Yuba City, Calif. and moved to Minnesota in 2005. She now lives in North St. Paul and works as an academic coordinator at the University of Minnesota’s TRIO Upward Bound program, serving low-income and at-risk youth.
Two firsts missed in St. Cloud: 1st Somali Minnesotans in city council, state House
In the race for the state House 14A seat representing St. Cloud, Abdi Daisane could have been the first East African to serve in the position. He is a small business owner who came to the U.S. 15 years ago.
Daisane ran as the DFL candidate against first-term Rep. Bernie Perryman, who is the Republican incumbent. He lost the race by 13 points to Perryman.
“I am incredibly proud of the work we’ve done to bring new voices and ideas to this election, and to engage every voter in our democratic process,” said Daisane. “While the outcome of this election is not what we had hoped for, I want to congratulate Representative Bernie Perryman on her reelection and thank her for a hard-fought campaign. The majority of voters have spoken, and I respect their decision.”
Three seats in St. Cloud’s City Council were up for grabs this year. Hudda Ibrahim and Omar Abdullahi Podi ran and either would have been the first Somali American to serve as a St. Cloud City Council member if elected.
Out of six candidates, voters elected Tami Calhoun, Mark Johnson and Scott Brodeen. Incumbent George Hontos lost his seat, Ibrahim came in fifth with 13 percent of the votes and Podi came in sixth with about 9 percent.
“As a candidate for the City Council At-Large in St. Cloud, Minnesota, I accept the election results and offer my sincere congratulations to those who won,” Podi said in a statement to MPR News. “In reflecting on the results, it’s clear that a shift in political priorities influenced the Somali community’s voting patterns this year… I remain committed to advancing the needs and voices of our community in ways that strengthen our city.”
Ibrahim posted on Facebook on Wednesday that “though I came up short, I learned a lot from these past five months.” She said she was grateful and congratulated the winners. Podi had not commented on social media.
There will be another vacant seat on the council now that Jake Anderson won the mayor’s seat. The council will appoint his replacement.
Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan misses chance to be nation’s 1st Indigenous woman to serve as governor
If Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Tim Walz had secured the presidential win, Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan would have been next in line to take Walz’s place. And she would have made American history as the first Indigenous woman to serve as a state’s governor.
She also would have been Minnesota’s first woman governor, but it was a missed opportunity as Trump secured his second term as the 47th president on Wednesday morning.
Flanagan had not spoken publicly as of 4 p.m. Wednesday.
MPR News reporters Clay Masters, Chandra Colvin and Melissa Olson contributed to this story.