Deb Kiel

Debra L. "Deb" Kiel (born 1957) is a Minnesota politician and a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives who represents District 1B, which includes portions of Marshall, Pennington, Polk and Red Lake counties in the northwestern part of the state. A Republican, she is also a farmer and homemaker.^[1]

Early Life, Education, and Career

Kiel was born and raised south of Crookston. She graduated from Crookston High School, then attended Concordia College in Moorhead. She was a member of the Crookston School Board for seven years, serving as the board's chair and treasurer. Kiel and her husband are sugar beet farmers. ^[2][3]

Minnesota House of Representatives

Elections

Kiel was first elected to the House in 2010, unseating longtime incumbent Rep. Bernard Lieder by just 131 votes. She was re-elected in 2012 and 2014.

Committee Assignments

For the 89th Legislative Session, Kiel is a part of:

• Aging & Long-Term Care Policy Committee
• Agriculture Finance Committee
• Greater Minnesota Economic & Workforce Development Policy Committee
• Mining & Outdoor Recreation Committee

For the 88th Legislative Session, Kiel was a part of:

• Agriculture Policy Committee
• Education Policy Committee
• Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture Finance Committee
• Taxes Subcommittee: Property and Local Tax Division

For the 87th Legislative Session, Kiel was a part of:

• Agriculture and Rural Development Policy and Finance Committee
• Education Reform Committee
• Environment, Energy and Natural Resources Policy and Finance Subcommittee: Legacy Funding Division
• Transportation Policy and Finance Committee

Tenure

Kiel was sworn in on January 4, 2011. She has severed in the 87th, 88th, and 89th Minnesota Legislatures. For the 89th(2015-2017) Legislative Session, Kiel is serving as Assistant Majority Leader.

Personal Life

Kiel married her husband Lonn in 1977. They have 4 kids:Christian, Katheryn, Stephanie, and Alexander. 3 of her kids are married and she has 12 grandchildren. Kiel is active at her home church, Our Savior’s Lutheran where she sings in the choir, teaches Sunday school, has served as the youth group leader, and taught music in Our Saviors’ Lutheran school. Kiel helps with the knowledge bowl group at Crookston Public schools; she is on the SPOKES group for the Villa St Vincent Foundation. Lonn ran 3 unsuccessful campaigns against Rep. Bernard Lieder before Deb succeeded in unseating him. Her great grandfather, John Perry, a Crookston farmer, represented Polk County in the Minnesota House during the 1921-1922 biennium.^[5][6][7]

References

External links

• Deb Kiel at Minnesota Legislators Past & Present
• Rep. Kiel Web Page
• Project Votesmart - Rep. Debra Kiel Profile
• Debra Kiel Campaign Web Site