Wikipedia

Nolan West

Nolan West (born September 30, 1990) is an American politician serving in the Minnesota House of Representatives since 2017. A member of the Republican Party of Minnesota, West represents District 37B in the northern Twin Cities metropolitan area, which includes the city of Blaine and parts of Anoka County.[1][2]

Nolan West
Member of the Minnesota House of Representatives
from the 32A district
37B (2017-2022)
Assumed office
January 3, 2017
Preceded byTim Sanders
Personal details
Born (1990-09-30) September 30, 1990 (age 33)
Political partyRepublican
ResidenceBlaine, Minnesota
Alma materUniversity of Minnesota

Early life, education, and career edit

West was raised in Blaine, Minnesota.[3] He attended Meadow Creek Christian School in Andover (the year after he graduated, the school’s name was changed to Legacy Christian Academy).[4] He attended the University of Minnesota and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in history with a minor in political science.[1] He was a legislative assistant for the Republican caucus in the Minnesota House of Representatives for almost two years until he resigned in September 2016 following reports of several racist posts he had made on Facebook.[5][6][7][8]

Minnesota House of Representatives edit

West was elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives in 2016, after incumbent Tim Sanders retired, and has been reelected every two years since. He serves as an assistant minority leader and sits on the Capital Investment, Education Finance, and Transportation Finance and Policy Committees.[9]

West's first session was the 90th legislative session (2017–18), in which he was chief author of 30 bills,[10] most notably HF0187,[11] HF0297,[12] and HF1496,[13] all of which addressed one of the main infrastructure issues of his district, Highway 65. No bill that West chief authored made it through committee; all were dead/failed.[10]

HF0187,[11] which addressed the reconstruction of 105th Ave., was introduced to the Transportation Finance Committee but no further actions were taken. SF172,[14] the Senate companion bill, was authored by Senator Jerry Newton, who pushed it into the 90th "First Special Session, HF5, Art. 1, Sec. 15, Sub. 3".[14]

HF5[15] was authored by Representative Dean Urdahl and addressed the 105th Ave. reconstruction by granting $3,246,000 to the city of Blaine to predesign, design, and reconstruct 105th Avenue in the vicinity of the National Sports Center in Blaine.[16]

West's second session was the 91st legislative session (2019–20), in which he was chief author of nine bills,[17] most notably HF1597[18] and HF3285,[19] both of which address Highway 65 and the intersection of 109th Ave. No bill that West chief authored during the 91st session made it through committee except HF3285, which was pushed into the 91st Legislature, 2020 5th Special Session by the Transportation Finance Committee.

HF3285[19] was addressed in HF0001[20] during the 91st Legislature, 2020 5th Special Session, authored by Representative Mary Murphy, and addressed the issue of the intersection of 109th Ave by allocating $1.5 million to "Anoka County to complete preliminary engineering, environmental analysis, and final design of a grade separation and associated improvements to Anoka County State-Aid Highway 12, known as 109th Avenue, at marked Trunk Highway 65 in the city of Blaine".[21]

Unlike most other members of the Republican caucus, West has been a strong supporter of legalizing recreational cannabis in Minnesota.[22][23][24] During the 92nd Minnesota Legislature, he voted for HF600, a bill that would have legalized cannabis in the state, though it was not taken up by the Republican-controlled Senate.[25] During the 93rd Legislature, West was one of five House Republicans who voted for HF100, which similarly legalized cannabis in the state; the bill was also passed by the DFL-controlled Senate and signed into law by Governor Tim Walz. West gave a 15-minute speech in support of the bill, comparing cannabis with other legal recreational drugs, such as nicotine and alcohol.[26]

Electoral history edit

2016 Minnesota State House - District 37B[27]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Nolan West 11,473 50.26
Democratic (DFL) Susan Witt 11,305 49.52
Write-in 49 0.21
Total votes 22,827 100.0
Republican hold
2018 Minnesota State House - District 37B[28]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Nolan West (incumbent) 10,254 50.22
Democratic (DFL) Amir Joseph Malik 10,101 49.47
Write-in 65 0.32
Total votes 20,420 100.0
Republican hold
2020 Minnesota State House - District 37B[29]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Nolan West (incumbent) 14,328 52.40
Democratic (DFL) Amir Joseph Malik 12,984 47.48
Write-in 33 0.12
Total votes 27,345 100.0
Republican hold
2022 Minnesota State House - District 32A[30]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Nolan West (incumbent) 11,067 57.25
Democratic (DFL) Ashton Ramsammy 8,247 42.66
Write-in 16 0.08
Total votes 19,330 100.0
Republican hold

Personal life edit

West resides in Blaine, Minnesota.[1]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c "West, Nolan". Minnesota Legislative Reference Library. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
  2. ^ Nelson, Todd (March 15, 2017). "Breaking the Ice: From controversial candidate to freshman lawmaker". Minnesota Lawyer. BridgeTower Media. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
  3. ^ "Nolan West to run for Minnesota House". ABC Newspapers. ECM Publishers. March 13, 2016. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
  4. ^ VanArragon, Caleb (2018-10-11). "District 37B Minnesota State House Election Guide: Nolan West and Amir Malik". BHS Blueprint. Retrieved 2022-07-15.
  5. ^ Coolican, J. Patrick (September 14, 2016). "House candidate Nolan West deletes pro-Confederate, anti-Lincoln postings". Star Tribune. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
  6. ^ Stassen-Berger, Rachel E. (September 14, 2016). "MN House candidate's posts about lynching, Abe Lincoln condemned". Pioneer Press. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
  7. ^ Coolican, J. Patrick (September 16, 2016). "House GOP candidate resigns from staff job after fallout from Confederate flag posts". Star Tribune. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
  8. ^ Moran-Froemming, Mandy (September 26, 2016). "West aplogizes, blames controversial posts on his youth". ABC Newspapers. ECM Publishers. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
  9. ^ "Rep. Nolan West (37B) - Minnesota House of Representatives". www.house.leg.state.mn.us. Retrieved 2022-07-13.
  10. ^ a b "Minnesota Legislature - Office of the Revisor of Statutes". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2022-07-13.
  11. ^ a b "HF 187 Status in the House for the 90th Legislature (2017 - 2018)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2022-07-13.
  12. ^ "HF 297 Status in the House for the 90th Legislature (2017 - 2018)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2022-07-13.
  13. ^ "HF 1496 Status in the House for the 90th Legislature (2017 - 2018)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2022-07-13.
  14. ^ a b "SF 172 Status in the Senate for the 90th Legislature (2017 - 2018)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  15. ^ "HF 5 Status in the House for the 90th Legislature, 2017 1st Special Session (2017 - 2017)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  16. ^ "HF 5 as introduced - 90th Legislature, 2017 1st Special Session (2017 - 2017)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  17. ^ "Minnesota Legislature - Office of the Revisor of Statutes". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  18. ^ "HF 1597 Status in the House for the 91st Legislature (2019 - 2020)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  19. ^ a b "HF 3285 Status in the House for the 91st Legislature (2019 - 2020)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  20. ^ "HF 1 Status in the House for the 91st Legislature, 2020 5th Special Session (2020 - 2020)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  21. ^ "HF 1 as introduced - 91st Legislature, 2020 5th Special Session (2020 - 2020)". www.revisor.mn.gov. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  22. ^ "Marijuana legalization advancing in Minnesota Legislature". AP News. 2023-04-25. Retrieved 2024-01-04.
  23. ^ "House passes finalized cannabis legalization bill, sends it to Senate - Session Daily - Minnesota House of Representatives". www.house.mn.gov. Retrieved 2024-01-04.
  24. ^ Tribune, Ryan Faircloth Star. "Minnesota House votes to legalize marijuana". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2024-01-04.
  25. ^ "Recreational cannabis bill passes House in historic vote - Session Daily - Minnesota House of Representatives". www.house.mn.gov. Retrieved 2024-01-04.
  26. ^ MN Rep goes off about marijuana legalization, retrieved 2024-01-04
  27. ^ "2016 Results for State Representative District 37B". Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  28. ^ "2018 Results for State Representative District 37B". Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  29. ^ "2020 Results for State Representative District 37B". Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  30. ^ "2022 Results for State Representative District 32A". Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved February 17, 2023.

External links edit

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