Her makes history as first woman and Hmong American elected St. Paul mayor
Go Deeper.
Create an account or log in to save stories.
Like this?
Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.
St. Paul has elected its first Hmong mayor and first woman to lead the city.
Just after midnight on Wednesday, state Rep. Kaohly Her won Tuesday’s election over incumbent Mayor Melvin Carter after a tabulation of second-choice votes. She had nearly 48 percent of the vote to Carter’s 45.
Her victory makes not only history for the St. Paul mayor’s office, but is also a first for the entire leadership of the city — the City Council is made up of all women.
She beat out Carter and three other challengers — Yan Chen, Adam Dullinger and Mike Hilborn.
Turn Up Your Support
MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all.
"My family came here as refugees. Never in their wildest dreams would I be standing here today accepting the position of mayor, mayor of the city that gave them the opportunity to live the American dream,” Her told supporters early Wednesday morning following her victory. “I am doing this work for them, for you and for the future of this great city.”
A DFLer, Her worked for Carter’s office in his first term and was a late addition to the St. Paul mayor’s race. She announced she was running for office in early August.
Her’s jump into the race posed a challenge to Carter, who has had long ties to the DFL party in the state. She had the backing of several DFL legislators.
She also had good name recognition, after representing part of St. Paul in the Minnesota House since 2019.
Her joined Morning Edition with Cathy Wurzer on Wednesday morning to talk about how she will lead.
“We need to rebuild relationships, and we need to reach to the different levels of government and have these conversations and to assess the progress that’s been made and where we want the relationship to go,” she said.
Her campaigned on revitalizing the downtown and Midway neighborhoods, and working to make the city more business-friendly and responsive.
“We need a St. Paul that is focused on expanding our revenue stream so that our budget isn't balanced on the backs of our residents property taxes and rents,” she said shortly the result was announced.
Following his loss, Carter — who is the city’s first Black mayor — told supporters that he’d called Her to congratulate the mayor-elect.
“She’s going to be the next mayor of this city, and I told her that me and my team will be there to set her up for success,” he said. “Because this has never been about me and this has never been about my team. This has to be about the city, and that means we have to set her up for success.”
State Sen. Foung Hawj, who represents part of St. Paul, says Her’s victory means a lot to St. Paul's Hmong community.
“She’s the first woman, and she just happened to be Hmong,” he said. “We will have a lot of work to do moving forward. I’m sure her administration, whenever she sets that up, will be representative of the diversity that we have here in St Paul, but, I will be in tears if I think about the Hmong aspect of it.”
St. Paul voter Nate Van Sickle said he liked Carter but wanted someone new in office.
“I think Melvin’s done great with the gun violence. I think it’s excellent. However, for one thing, it’s a third term, it’s time for a change,” he said.
Her has a story not unlike many Hmong residents of a certain generation in St. Paul. She was born in Laos and came to the U.S. with her family as refugees when she was three.
She’s a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and has her MBA from Northeastern University. She worked in the business and financial services world for 15 years. She also worked as a community organizer, directed the Hmong women’s organization Hnub Thisab and worked as the administrator for the St. Paul School Board.
This year’s election marked the first time a St. Paul mayor’s race went to a second round of tabulation since city residents approved ranked-choice voting in 2009; that change took effect in 2011. Carter’s victories in 2021 and 2017 — as well as previous Mayor Chris Coleman’s victory in 2013 — were all decided on the first count, when the winning candidate got more than 50 percent of the vote.
This is the last year the St. Paul mayor’s race will be held in an odd numbered year. Her’s term will run through 2028, when the city will hold its next mayoral election. Her victory also means that a special election will need to be held to replace her seat in the Minnesota House.
