In 164 years of statehood, no Black woman has ever served in the Minnesota Senate. In November, six could be elected.

As a child, she was saved from deportation by Paul Wellstone’s intervention. If elected to the state Senate, Huldah Hiltsley says she will pay it forward by serving other members of her community.

by Hibah Ansari March 25, 2022

The St. Paul school board is a window on how big institutions work. Zuki Ellis wants to take what she learned there, and apply it in the Minnesota Senate.

by Hibah Ansari March 25, 2022

The life of Black women is vastly different than that of the older, white men who dominate the Minnesota Senate. Zaynab Mohamed says her experiences need to be reflected, too.

by Hibah Ansari March 25, 2022

The past few years have shown how much isn’t working in Minnesota. If elected to the state Senate, Erin Maye Quade says she’ll focus on fundamentally changing the system.

by Hibah Ansari March 25, 2022

Public safety is about much more than policing. Clare Oumou Verbeten wants to foster a broader conversation about it in the Minnesota Senate.

by Hibah Ansari March 25, 2022

State Senate candidate Marla Helseth wants to focus on improving student performance, recovering economically from COVID, and training police.

by Hibah Ansari March 31, 2022

There never has been a Black woman in the Minnesota Senate. Five DFL candidates and one Republican candidate running for office in November are trying to change that.  

As candidates kick off their campaigns for primary elections on August 9 and the general elections on November 8, they are offering Minnesotans a chance to make history by electing not just one Black woman state senator —but up to four more. 

• Huldah Hiltsley is a data privacy analyst running in District 38 (formerly District 40)
• Marla Helseth is a former model and restaurant manager running in District 49*
• Erin Maye Quade is a former state representative running in District 56 (formerly District 57)
• Zaynab Mohamed is a community activist and policy aide running in District 63
• Zuki Ellis is a St. Paul Public Schools board member running in District 65
• Clare Oumou Verbeten is a equity manager for the City of St. Paul running in District 66

Delegates at the senate district DFL conventions on March 26 will select candidates to endorse for the state races. A DFL endorsement could make a historic win more likely for the Black women running to be state senators. The DFL candidate who wins the primary election will move on to run against Republican candidates in the general election.

Sahan Journal asked these six Black women about what it would mean to be part of a historic cohort of incoming elected officials, as well as their hopes for office, especially as their constituents continue to navigate a pandemic. In the midst of the strike by Minneapolis educators, the candidates also discussed how they plan to address education funding. The DFL candidates also shared how they plan to engage their Republican colleagues, as well as constituents who come from immigrant communities and communities of color. The candidates range in background and work experiences. Two candidates, Zaynab and Oumou Verbeten, are in their twenties and could become the youngest women to join the Minnesota Senate. Their answers have been edited for length and clarity.

*UPDATE: This story has been updated to reflect responses from additional candidates and new redistricting information.

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