Fue Lee

Fue Lee (born 1991[1]) is a Hmong American community organizer and activist from Minneapolis, Minnesota.[2] He is the Representative-elect for District 59A in the Minnesota House of Representatives.[3] Elected in 2016, Lee is the first person of color and of Asian descent to represent that district in the Minnesota House.[4] He is the fourth Hmong American elected to a state legislature.

Lee was born in a refugee camp in Thailand to Hmong parents from Laos, and came to Minneapolis as a toddler in 1992.[5] He is a graduate of Carleton College, and is an employee in the office of the Minnesota Secretary of State.[2][6] He has previously worked under then-Representative Steve Simon, Representative Dan Schoen, Representative John Lesch, and Congressman Keith Ellison.[1]

Community leaders encouraged Fue Lee to run into the primaries after losing the DFL convention endorsement during the first round of voting by a delegate.[6] Many felt the local senate district DFL and current lawmaker was not representative of the people. According to Lee, "One of the reasons I decided to run for office is because candidates that were supposed to represent all of the city and its communities weren’t doing their job. I want to be able to respect my community by understanding the issues we’re facing on a daily basis."[7]

On August 9, 2016, Fue Lee unseated 20-year incumbent Joe Mullery who was backed by the political establishment including state Senator Foung Hawj, Congressman Keith Ellison, and Governor Mark Dayton.[8]

Lee won the primary election decisively, receiving 55.5% of the vote, to 44.5% for Mullery.[9] His Republican opponent in the November 8, 2016 election was Jessica Newville.[10] Lee was elected on November 8, 2016 [1] receiving 81.3% of the vote. [11]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Tevlin, Jon (November 8, 2016). "From Rep.-elect Fue Lee, a lesson in what democracy looks like". Minneapolis Star Tribune. Retrieved November 8, 2016.
  2. 1 2 Jurewitsch, Andreas (August 1, 2016). "In Their Own Words: Fue Lee, Candidate for Minnesota House District 59A, North Minneapolis". Hmong Pages. 7 (8 ed.).
  3. ↑ FOX. "Fue Lee wins DFL nomination in District 59A". KMSP. Retrieved 2016-10-27.
  4. ↑ Rupar, Aaron (2016-08-11). "From Refugee Camps To The Statehouse: Two Groundbreaking Primary Victories In Minnesota". ThinkProgress. Retrieved 2016-10-27.
  5. ↑ "Neighbors for Fue Lee". fuelee.org. Retrieved 2016-11-11.
  6. 1 2 "What Fue Lee's victory says about the political power of Hmong-Americans in Minneapolis". MinnPost. Retrieved 2016-10-27.
  7. ↑ Hutchins, Marcelle (November 10, 2016). "These elected officials are among the few who were born outside the US". KERA (FM). Dallas. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Fue Lee to run for Minnesota House Seat 59A". Asian American Press. 2016-02-06. Retrieved 2016-10-27.
  9. ↑ "Results for State Representative District 59A". Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon. August 11, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
  10. ↑ "A New Voice for North Minneapolis". Jessica Newville Minnesota House District 59A. 2016. Retrieved October 30, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Minnesota District 59A State House Results: Fue Lee Wins". New York Times. November 10, 2016. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
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