Minnesota panel unveils new state flag design

Sheri Walsh
·3 min read
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Minnesota has adopted a new state flag design following months of research and 20,000 public comments. The flag is expected to start flying on May 11, pending approval from the state legislature. Photo courtesy of State Emblems Redesign Commission
Minnesota has adopted a new state flag design following months of research and 20,000 public comments. The flag is expected to start flying on May 11, pending approval from the state legislature. Photo courtesy of State Emblems Redesign Commission

Dec. 19 (UPI) -- Minnesota is ready to unfurl a new state flag, as the State Emblems Redesign Commission on Tuesday selected its final design.

The new design features the shape of Minnesota in deep blue, topped with an eight-point star facing north -- to represent the state's official motto, "L'Étoile du Nord," which translates from French to "The Star of the North" -- and a block of light blue to represent water.

"It's official; we have a new Minnesota flag!" the group Minnesotans for a Better Flag wrote Tuesday in a post on X, formerly Twitter. "A+ design according to the North American Vexillogical Association standards; well done SERC commission! Now on to the legislature for final approval."

Minnesota's new flag design follows decades of criticism over its current flag as being offensive toward Native Americans. The emblem in the middle, which was considered too busy to decipher from a distance, showed a Native American riding off into the sunset as a White settler plows a field.

In addition to a new flag, the commission created a new state seal design, which features a red-eyed loon on a Minnesota lake surrounded by pine trees, the North Star and sprigs of wild rice.

Minnesota's current flag has been criticized for decades for being offensive toward Native Americans. The emblem in the middle, which is considered too busy to decipher from a distance, depicts a Native American riding into the sunset as a White settler plows a field. Photo courtesy of Minnesota Secretary of State
Minnesota's current flag has been criticized for decades for being offensive toward Native Americans. The emblem in the middle, which is considered too busy to decipher from a distance, depicts a Native American riding into the sunset as a White settler plows a field. Photo courtesy of Minnesota Secretary of State

The final flag selection followed months of research and meetings, in addition to more than 20,000 public comments. The new flag was designed by Andrew Prekker, a 24-year-old resident of Luverne.

"The last few days have been surreal for me. Very few things make me speechless in life, but this is one of those moments where it's hard to express the sheer gratitude and amazement I've felt at this whole opportunity," Prekker said Tuesday in a statement.

In addition to a new flag, the State Emblems Redesign Commission created a new state seal design, which features a red-eyed loon on a Minnesota lake surrounded by pine trees, the North Star and sprigs of wild rice. Image courtesy of State Emblems Redesign Commission
In addition to a new flag, the State Emblems Redesign Commission created a new state seal design, which features a red-eyed loon on a Minnesota lake surrounded by pine trees, the North Star and sprigs of wild rice. Image courtesy of State Emblems Redesign Commission

Prekker's design was originally white, green and blue to symbolize the state's snow, agriculture and water.

"We needed to focus on one thing to make us different," State Emblems Redesign Commission Chair Luis Fitch said in choosing the final design.

The new blue-on-blue flag is expected to start flying on May 11, which is Statehood Day, pending approval of the state legislature.

Two Republican lawmakers have criticized the fast pace of the process and could introduce legislation that would require the flag's design be put before the voters, according to the Star Tribune.

"This process should have taken a lot longer, we should have taken more public testimony, we should have heard from more Minnesotans," said Rep. Bjorn Olson, R-Fairmont.

"Change is hard initially, but then you get used to it," advised commission vice chair Anita Gaul. "By the time my kids are adults, they will embrace this flag; they will hardly remember the one we had before it."