2023 Minnesota House of Representatives District 52B special election

A special election was held in the U.S. state of Minnesota on December 5, 2023, to elect a new representative for District 52B in the Minnesota House of Representatives. The election was caused by the resignation of DFL incumbent Ruth Richardson who left the legislature to focus on her role at Minnesota's Planned Parenthood affiliate. The special election was won by DFL candidate Bianca Virnig with 58% of votes cast.[1]

2023 Minnesota House of Representatives District 52B special election

← 2022 December 5, 2023 (2023-12-05) 2024 →

Minnesota House of Representatives District 52B
 
Nominee Bianca Virnig Cynthia Lonnquist
Party Democratic (DFL) Republican
Popular vote 3,853 2,705
Percentage 58.22% 40.87%

Representative before election

Ruth Richardson
Democratic (DFL)

Elected Representative

Bianca Virnig
Democratic (DFL)

Background

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District 52B covers parts of Eagan, Mendota, and Mendota Heights.[2] The Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party and Republican Party of Minnesota held a primary to select their candidates for the special election on November 16, 2023. There was only one Republican running in the primary. The Libertarian Party nominated their candidate without a primary. [3]

Candidates

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Republican Party

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Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party

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  • Bianca Virnig, a member of the Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan School Board since 2021.
  • Jay Miller, teacher and Mendota Heights firefighter
  • Cynthia Callais, former DFL legislative aide
  • Chris Whitfield, Eagan Advisory Planning Commission member and local DFL officer.[3]

Libertarian Party

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  • Charles Kuchlenz[3]

Results

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2023 Minnesota House of Representatives District 52B special election[4]
Party Candidate Votes % pp
Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party Bianca Virnig 3,853 58.22 –3.45
Republican Party Cynthia Lonnquist 2,705 40.87 +2.64
Libertarian Party Charles Kuchlenz 59 0.89 +0.89
Write-in N/A 1 0.02 –0.08
Total 6,618 100.00 ±0.00

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Mohr, Jonathan (December 6, 2023). "DFL candidate wins special election in House District 52B". Minnesota House of Representatives. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  2. ^ "House District 52B map" (PDF). Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d Oot, Torey Van (November 16, 2023). "Special primary for vacant Dakota County legislative seat to be held Thursday". Axios. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  4. ^ "Results for State Representative District 52B". Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State. December 5, 2023. Retrieved February 12, 2024.