Rep. Kaohly Vang Her, DFL-St. Paul, speaks on the House floor in 2024. (Photo by Andrew VonBank/Minnesota House Info)
With just three months to Election Day, Minnesota Democratic Rep. Kaohly Her announced on Monday she’s running for mayor of St. Paul.
Her previously worked as policy director for St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter, whom she’ll challenge on Nov. 4, during his first term and has served in the Minnesota House of Representatives since 2018.
“We need a mayor who is ready to step up, engage with the community, and provide focused leadership that will move our city forward,” Her said in a press release announcing her candidacy. “My story is the story of the American Dream – but for many, that dream is no longer attainable.”
With so little time before the election, Her will have to move quickly to raise money and assemble a campaign to challenge a two-term incumbent.
Her recently drew nationwide attention during the Minnesota Legislature’s June special session when she said she was “illegal” on the House floor.
“I am illegal in this country. My parents are illegal here in this country,” Her said.
In an interview with the Reformer, Her later said she was trying to inspire empathy in her Republican colleagues who were about to vote to take away state-funded health insurance for undocumented adults in Minnesota. She said that she and her parents are U.S. citizens who came to the U.S. as refugees from Laos.
In 2024, Her was chief author of a bill to pass the Minnesota Equal Rights Amendment, a proposed constitutional amendment that would protect Minnesotans from discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, ancestry, disability and sex. The DFL-controlled Legislature failed to pass the bill.
In the press release, Her criticized President Donald Trump’s immigration and tariff policies and said that St. Paul residents “need leadership that meets this challenging time.”
“I am the right leader for this moment. That is why I am running to be your Saint Paul Mayor,” Her said.
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