Minnesota Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan Could Become First Native American Female Governor

A November victory by Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz would shake up political control in Minnesota — and could spur the nation’s first Native American woman to become governor.

Democratic Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan is a member of the White Earth Nation and, as a longtime political activist, helped prepare Walz to run for office nearly two decades ago. In the years since, she has honed her political skills as a school board member and state legislator.

Political allies credit Flanagan with leading the effort to bring tribal nations to the table in statewide conversations about government policy. They also say she has played an important role in promoting laws that focus on children and families.

Meanwhile, her opponents say the lieutenant governor has taken an overly liberal approach to lawmaking in St. Paul and blame her — like Walz — for response to the riots following the murder of George Floyd.

Kelly Dittmar, research director at the Center for American Women and Politics, says Harris’ selection as vice presidential candidate could have a domino effect in Minnesota and elsewhere.

“This particular case in Minnesota is important in the sense that it shows the impact that Kamala’s promotion has on other women, both in junior positions and in lower echelons of power,” Dittmar said.

Walz and Flanagan’s Early Meeting and Friendship

Flanagan, 44, is the highest-ranking Native woman elected to a leadership position in the country. She grew up in Saint Louis Park, a suburb of Minneapolis, and graduated from the University of Minnesota with degrees in American Indian studies and child psychology.

Shortly thereafter, Flanagan won a seat on the Minneapolis Board of Education. She became involved in local Democratic politics, joining Camp Wellstone as a trainer for candidates, organizers, and other campaign staff. The Democratic training camp was named after the late American Paul Wellstone.

It was there that she met Tim Walz, then a high school geography teacher who wanted to get more involved in politics.

“At first I was like, who is this guy?” Flanagan said. thinking about introducing years later“And then at the end of practice it was like, ‘Who is this guy?’ And we became friends.”

Porucznik gubernatora Minnesoty Peggy Flanagan przemawia do tłumu w sobotę 1 czerwca 2024 r. podczas konwencji stanowej DFL 2024, która odbyła się w Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center w Duluth. Konwencja stanowa pełni funkcję organu organizacyjnego, gdzie delegaci z całej Minnesoty spotykają się, aby prowadzić interesy DFL State Party. <br />” srcset=”https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c0f171d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1244×933+0+0/resize/1760×1320!/quality/90/?url=https%3A% 2F%2Fnpr.brightspotcdn.com%2Fdims3%2Fdefault%2Fstrip%2Ffalse%2Fcrop% 2F1244x933%200%200%2Fresize%2F1244x933%21%2F%3Furl%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fb3%2Fe7%2F01f842c44815b8a5cb0f98b0051e%2Fad6 7e6-20240601-minnesota-dfl-convention-duluth- round2-10-webp1400.jpg 2x” width=”880″ height=”660″ loading=”lazy” src=”https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ad1be6f/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1244×933+0+0/resize/880×660!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F %2Fnpr.brightspotcdn.com%2Fdims3%2Fdefault%2Fstrip%2Ffalse%2Fcrop%2F12 44×933%200%200%2Fresize%2F1244x933%21%2F%3Furl%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fb3%2Fe7%2F01f842c44815b8a5cb0f98b0051e%2Fad67e6- 20240601-minnesota-dfl-convention-duluth- round2-10-webp1400.jpg”/></p>
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<div class= — Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan speaks to the crowd Saturday, June 1, 2024, during the 2024 DFL State Convention held at the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center in Duluth. The state convention serves as the organizing body where delegates from across Minnesota meet to conduct DFL State Party business.

Flanagan served as executive director of the Children’s Defense Fund before running for an open seat in the Minnesota House of Representatives in 2015. During her term, she fought for representation for people of color and Indigenous communities and helped found the House People of Color and Indigenous Caucus.

Shortly after Walz announced his run for governor in 2017, he selected Flanagan as his vice presidential running mate.

“I told her, you know, ‘I’m running for governor, and I’m thinking about doing something (that) hasn’t been done before,’” Walz recalled years later. “I’d like to build a team early and not go to a convention, but run as a partnership.”

Throughout the campaign — and in office — Flanagan worked closely with Walz, and was at his helm during the COVID-19 pandemic and the protests following the killing of George Floyd.

Flanagan said the steady involvement has prepared her well to manage state government as Walz crisscrosses the country in her new role as Harris’ vice presidential running mate, and it could help her make a quick transition if she advances.

“The most important job of a lieutenant governor is to be prepared. I take that very seriously,” Flanagan told reporters earlier this week. “I think the last six years of serving side by side with Gov. Walz have prepared me, but I don’t want to go out on a limb.”

A “people first” approach to governance

The lieutenant governor’s allies in Minnesota say she was at the center of efforts to get the funding. universal free meals for students and strengthen safety net programs that help families. Flanagan often shared stories of getting a meal voucher when she ran out of lunch money, or having her asthma medication covered by the state, which justified state policies.

“The reality is that a lot of people, when they hear this story, can put themselves in that situation,” said Democratic state Rep. Jamie Becker-Finn.

Becker-Finn is a descendant of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe and served with Flanagan at the Capitol. She says Flanagan’s life experience helped her connect with issues involving children and families.

“Anyone who has met her or worked with her knows how important it is to her to put people first,” Becker-Finn said. “She always does what’s right and advocates, even when it’s hard, even when people don’t want to spend money.”

Flanagan also made it a priority to include the voices of 11 Native tribes bordering Minnesota and establish the nation’s first office for missing and murdered indigenous women and girls.

Republicans criticize Walz and Flanagan for list of new progressive laws in the state. And they say the left turn drove some people out of the state.

“I think they are espousing a leftist ideology that is divorced from reality and common sense,” said David Hann, chairman of the Minnesota Republican Party.

Minnesota House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth, a Republican, said a Flanagan administration would likely mean the same thing for the state, or perhaps an even more progressive policy agenda.

“(Walz and Flanagan) were very united on the issues they pushed through,” Demuth said. “I didn’t hear any difference in their party priorities.”

Women of color are underrepresented in elected offices

Nationwide, only three women of color have served as governor, according to the Center for American Women and Politics: Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and Republican Gov. Susana Martinez, both of New Mexico, and former Republican Gov. Nikki Haley of South Carolina.

Dittmar, of the Center for American Women and Politics, said women of color face barriers in accessing campaign funds, but that doesn’t have to be the case.

“Some people argue that they are somehow less electable, when in fact I think in many cases, and especially increasingly, the opposite is true,” Dittmar said.

“Women who are at the intersection of racial and gender identities that have historically been marginalized can often connect with diverse communities by running for office and being successful in it, and of course by bringing diverse perspectives.”

Minnesota is one of 28 states that has never had a female governor. Flanagan says she thinks about what her role means for Native communities.

“My daughter’s reality is so different from what I grew up in,” Flanagan said. “Growing up, I had Geraldine Ferraro, which was great. But she has her aunt Deb (Haaland) as secretary of the interior and her aunt Sharice (Davids) who is in Congress and her mom is lieutenant governor.”

“That’s why representation is so important,” Flanagan continued, “and I’m very excited about what the future holds.”

And even if the cards don’t go our way, Flanagan is confident an Indigenous woman — she or someone else — will soon take over as governor.