Peggy Flanagan

Peggy Flanagan grew up in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, and still lives there. She graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2002 with a B.A. in American Indian Studies and Child Psychology. She is a member of the White Earth Nation. She was elected to the Minneapolis School Board and served from 2005 to 2009, worked as a trainer for Wellstone Action, and was executive director of Children's Defense Fund-Minnesota. She won a November 3, 2015 special election to the Minnesota House from District 46A, was sworn in November 9, 2015, and was reelected in 2016. She resigned her House seat on January 7, 2019 to be sworn in as lieutenant governor alongside Gov. Tim Walz, a post she still holds. In 2026 Flanagan ran for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Tina Smith. She won the August 11, 2026 DFL primary with 58.8 percent of the vote, defeating U.S. Rep. Angie Craig and four other candidates, and faces Republican Michele Tafoya in the November 3 general election.