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| Former Hmong refugee XP Lee elected to the Minnesota legislature. |
A Hmong refugee won the special election to replace his mentor, the late Melissa Hortman, who was allegedly assassinated by a radical conservative gunman.
Xp Lee won the District 34B special election Tuesday (Sept. 16), which will return the House to a 67-67 tie after he is sworn in.
The Democrat won with 60.8% of the vote over Republican candidate Ruth Bittner’s 39.1%, according to the Secretary of State’s Office.
Lee is a health equity analyst at the Department of Health and a former Brooklyn Park city councilor. He said his win Tuesday is a “thank you” for everything the community has given him.
“My story is proof of what’s possible in our country and our state: I was born in a refugee camp, our family got our papers, and we came to this country when I was 10 months old. I worked hard in school, later I joined a union, and I have been serving my community in every way I can,” he said in a statement.
In a statement, House DFL Caucus Leader Zack Stephenson (DFL-Coon Rapids) congratulated Lee for his win Tuesday. “Xp Lee is going to make a fantastic member of our team. He’s a union member, a father, and a testament to what’s possible when we make sure we don’t leave anyone behind. His story is the American Dream.”
With Lee's victory, there are now six Hmong politicians serve in the Minnesota state legislature. This includes one state senator and five members of the state House of Representatives. All are members of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party, which is affiliated with the national Democratic Party.
The main issues facing the Hmong community in Minnesota include significant health disparities, socioeconomic challenges, cultural tensions between generations, and recent threats of deportation. With a population of around 96,000, the community, the ssecond largest Hmong population in the United States after California's Hmong community, is actively working to address these systemic issues. The majority of the Hmong population resides in the Twin Cities metropolitan area, especially in Ramsey County (St. Paul) and Hennepin County (Minneapolis).
Lee is filling he seat left vacant by the slaying of Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman, who was killed along with her husband in their home June 14.
The suspect, Vance Boelter, has been charged with the homicides. The attacks, which were described by authorities as politically motivated, occurred on June 14, 2025, when Boelter, posing as a police officer, shot the couple at their home in Brooklyn Park
The suspect, Vance Boelter, has been charged with the homicides. The attacks, which were described by authorities as politically motivated, occurred on June 14, 2025, when Boelter, posing as a police officer, shot the couple at their home in Brooklyn Park
Lee said his campaign team did their best to make Hortman proud.
“I have never lost sight of the situation that brought us to this moment, and I will work hard every day to carry forward Speaker Melissa Hortman’s legacy,” Lee stold NPR.
“I have never lost sight of the situation that brought us to this moment, and I will work hard every day to carry forward Speaker Melissa Hortman’s legacy,” Lee stold NPR.
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