Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota since 2019 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Peggy Flanagan (Ojibwe: Geji Waudamukwe;[lower-alpha 1][1] born September 22, 1979) is an American politician. She is the 50th Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota since 2019. She was elected lieutenant governor on November 6, 2018.[2] She is the first woman of color elected to statewide office in Minnesota, and the highest-ranking Native American woman in elected office in the nation.[3]
Peggy Flanagan | |
---|---|
Geji Waudamukwe[lower-alpha 1] | |
50th Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota | |
Assumed office January 7, 2019 | |
Governor | Tim Walz |
Preceded by | Michelle Fischbach |
Member of the Minnesota House of Representatives from the 46A district | |
In office November 9, 2015 – January 7, 2019 | |
Preceded by | Ryan Winkler |
Succeeded by | Ryan Winkler |
Personal details | |
Born | September 22, 1979 Minnesota, U.S. |
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse(s) |
Tim Hellendrung (div. 2017)Tom Weber (m. 2019) |
Children | 1 |
Education | University of Minnesota (BA) |
She is a member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL). Flanagan represented District 46A in the Minnesota House of Representatives from 2015 to 2019. Before being elected to political office, she worked at a political training camp and was an activist.[4] She is politically a progressive.[4]
Flanagan was born in Minnesota to activist Marvin Manypenny.[5] Flanagan was raised by a single mother in St. Louis Park, Minnesota. She is of Irish and Ojibwe descent.[6] She is a citizen of the White Earth Nation.[4]
Flanagan received a bachelor's degree in child psychology and American Indian studies from the University of Minnesota in 2002.[7][8]
While in college, Flanagan worked on U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone's campaign, eventually becoming an organizer for the urban Native American community.[9] After college, she worked for the Minnesota Council of Churches and the Minneapolis public school system.[9]
In her first run for elective office, Flanagan won a seat on the board of Minneapolis Public Schools in 2004.[10] In 2008, she ran against incumbent Minnesota Representative Joe Mullery in the Democratic primary, but dropped out of the race because of her mother's health problems.[9] After working a handful of other jobs, Flanagan worked as a trainer at Wellstone Action, helping people who wanted to run for office in Minnesota.[9] She was then appointed to briefly serve on the school board again from 2010 until 2011.[11]
Flanagan was elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives without any competition in a special election on November 3, 2015, and sworn in on November 9.[12]
In 2017, Flanagan became a candidate for lieutenant governor, joining U.S. Representative Tim Walz, who won the DFL primary in the 2018 Minnesota gubernatorial election.[13] In the general election, Walz and Flanagan defeated the Republican nominees, Jeff Johnson and Donna Bergstrom. Walz and Flanagan were reelected in 2022.[14][15]
Flanagan supports transgender rights and providing gender-affirming care to transgender youth. She supported Walz's executive order protecting access to gender-affirming care for adults and youth.[16]
Flanagan was one of four chairs of the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.[17]
Flanagan has a daughter with her first husband, Tim Hellendrung.[18] The marriage ended in 2017. She lives in St. Louis Park, Minnesota.[19]
In January 2018, Flanagan announced that she was in a relationship with radio host Tom Weber.[20] Flanagan married Weber in September 2019.[21]
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