Minnesota Democratic Senate nominee?
$95.4K
AUG 12, 2026Primary Election
Party selects its nominee.
Overview
Current roleFormer State Representative
PartyDemocratic
Political ideologyProgressive Democrat
Age56 years old (May 27, 1970)
GenderFemale
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LocationMinnesota
BackgroundAttorney
EducationBoston University — B.A., Philosophy and Political Science (1991)
Notable personal detailsMelissa Anne Hortman was an American attorney and Democratic–Farmer–Labor politician who served in the Minnesota House of Representatives from 2005 until her death in 2025, representing a suburban Twin Cities district. She served as Minnesota House Minority Leader (2017–2019) and as the 61st Speaker of the Minnesota House (2019–2025). Hortman earned degrees from Boston University, the University of Minnesota Law School, and the Harvard Kennedy School.
SourcesShowHide
Positions
Economy & Taxes
Supports making Minnesota’s tax code more progressive by raising revenue from the wealthiest households and corporations to fund expanded investments in education, health care, and economic supports; has promoted creation of a new top income tax bracket for very high earners and refundable tax credits for families and climate actions. Emphasizes using surplus and new progressive revenue to fund ongoing public services and targeted relief for workers, families, seniors, and renters.
Healthcare
Supports expanding access to affordable, high-quality health care through a public option (MinnesotaCare buy-in), lowering out-of-pocket costs, addressing prescription drug pricing, and expanding coverage in public programs. Has sponsored and promoted legislation to allow Minnesotans to buy into MinnesotaCare and to reduce barriers to care.
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Immigration & Border
Has expressed opposition to family separations and criticized Trump-era border practices, while also casting a decisive vote in June 2025 to remove adult undocumented immigrants from eligibility for MinnesotaCare as part of a budget deal. Her record therefore contains both humanitarian/pro-immigrant statements and at least one significant action that restricted benefits for undocumented adults.
Abortion & Reproductive Rights
The candidate supports protecting and expanding access to abortion and reproductive health care, describes abortion as health care, and backed passage of the Protect Reproductive Options (PRO) Act to enshrine rights to contraception and abortion into Minnesota law. The candidate has also opposed Republican bills that would restrict reproductive freedom or funnel funds to crisis pregnancy centers.
Climate & Energy
Supports major clean-energy investment and ambitious emissions reduction goals, including policies to accelerate deployment of solar and storage, tax credits for clean-energy adoption, and a 100% carbon-free/zero-carbon benchmark for electricity by 2040. Advocates transitioning away from fossil fuels and funding climate adaptation and resilience programs. Has sponsored and promoted statewide climate action plans and legislation to expand renewable energy and climate finance tools.
Public Safety & Guns
Supports expanded criminal background checks on gun sales and creation/use of extreme risk (red flag) orders to keep firearms from dangerous people; advocates for common-sense gun violence prevention measures while working within the legislature. Emphasizes passing background-check and red flag legislation as part of broader public-safety bills.
News
Recent polling highlighted by CNN shows Democrats are increasingly identifying as liberal, with 59% calling themselves liberal in 2025—the highest level since 1976. The report also notes Democrats outnumber Republicans by 8 points in self-identification, suggesting a potentially favorable environment heading into the 2026 midterms. As a candidate, Melissa Hortman may be affected by these broader shifts in Democratic voter ideology and party identification.
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New updates coming soon
We're monitoring and will update when new data impacts the race.
- Polls
- Endorsements
- Fundraising