DFLer Bianca Virnig wins special election for vacant Dakota County House seat

Alex Derosier, Pioneer Press
·1 min read

Democratic-Farmer-Labor candidate Bianca Virnig won a three-way special election Thursday for a vacant state House seat in the south Twin Cities suburbs.

Virnig, a member of the Rosemount-Apple Valley Eagan school board, will represent Dakota County’s House District 52B in the upcoming legislative session. She received 58% of the vote, according to unofficial results Tuesday night.

Mendota Heights Republican Cynthia Lonnquist got 41% of the vote and Eagan Libertarian Charles Kuchlenz received about 1%.

Voters cast more than 6,600 ballots, according to initial results from the Secretary of State.

With Virnig’s victory, the DFL will preserve its 70-64 majority in the state House of Representatives.

House District 52B includes Eagan and Mendota Heights. The seat opened after Rep. Ruth Richardson, DFL-Mendota Heights, resigned from her seat in September. During her five years in the House, she was a key sponsor of paid family and medical leave legislation, which after years of effort became law this year.

Richardson in 2022 accepted a position as CEO of Planned Parenthood North Central States. At the time she did not plan to resign, something Republicans called a conflict of interest. She eventually resigned to focus more on her new role.

Gov. Tim Walz called the special election shortly after Richardson stepped down.

The district has favored Democrats in recent years, though Republicans saw an opportunity in the election as there was no incumbent and turnout was expected to be lower than normal.

The last time a Republican won in the district was in 2016 when the seat was open.

The Legislature convenes for the 2024 session on Feb. 12.

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