Peggy Flanagan is the Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota, having assumed office in 2019. A member of the White Earth Nation, she would be the first Native American woman elected to the U.S. Senate if elected. She earned a bachelor's degree in American Indian studies and child psychology from the University of Minnesota in 2002. Her career includes serving as the youngest member of the Minneapolis School Board at age 25, executive director of the Children's Defense Fund–Minnesota, and trainer for Wellstone Action. In the state legislature (2015-2019), she led Democrats on child care issues and served as one of only two DFLers to successfully author a bill that became law while in the minority. As Lieutenant Governor, she championed paid family and medical leave, investments in education and healthcare, housing initiatives, and abortion rights protections.
Flanagan was born and raised in poverty in Minneapolis. Her single mother relied on government assistance including food stamps and Medicaid. She became involved in Democratic politics at a young age, serving as the youngest member of the Minneapolis School Board at age 25. She worked as a trainer for Wellstone Action, helping to build grassroots political power. As executive director of the Children's Defense Fund–Minnesota, she co-chaired the successful campaign to raise Minnesota's minimum wage for the first time in a decade. Elected to the Minnesota House in 2015 representing District 46A, she led Democrats on child care issues and served during a period when her party was in the minority. In 2019, she was elected Lieutenant Governor alongside Tim Walz and has championed paid family and medical leave, free school meals, historic housing investments, and advances in tribal-state relations.