U.S. Rep. Tom Emmer faces Jeanne Hendricks in rematch for Minnesota 6th Congressional District seat
MINNEAPOLIS — Voters in Minnesota will decide on Tuesday if Republican Congressman Tom Emmer will fend off another challenge from Democratic candidate Jeanne Hendricks to maintain his seat representing Minnesota's 6th Congressional District.
Emmer, 63, is currently serving as the U.S. House Majority Whip, making the third highest-ranking member of the U.S. House. He is in his fourth term serving the district, which encompasses communities including Andover, Blaine, Chaska, Elk River and the St. Cloud area. He has the endorsement of former President Donald Trump, despite Trump's swift and successful campaign earlier this year to torpedo his bid to become House Speaker.
Hendricks, 67, is a nurse anesthetist who, according to her campaign website, pledges to "protect" democracy and fight for women's rights. Hendricks previously challenged Emmer in 2022, losing by more than 77,000 votes.
The candidates
Indiana native Emmer, a father of seven adult children, was an attorney for years before serving in the city councils of Independence and Delano. He was voted into the Minnesota House of Representatives in 2005 in District 19B, which includes Owatonna, Medford and Waseca.
He challenged Democrat Mark Dayton in the 2010 gubernatorial race, which he lost by fewer than 9,000 votes. He then ran for the U.S. House seat vacated by Michelle Bachman in 2013, which he won handily in 2014.
Emmer was elected chair of the Republican National Congressional Committee in 2019 before becoming majority whip in 2022.
In the chaos following the historic ouster of GOP House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in 2023, Emmer threw his hat in the ring to take the seat, receiving McCarthy's endorsement. But just hours after announcing his run, Trump took to social media to denounce Emmer as a "RINO," an acronym meaning "Republican in name only." He also dismissed him as a "globalist" who "never respected the Power of a Trump Endorsement," and who "spent more time defending Ilhan Omar, than he did me."
Emmer, who voted to certify Joe Biden as the winner of the 2020 presidential election, endorsed Trump in 2016, 2020 and 2024.
Hendricks, a South Dakota native, is a mother of two adult children who has "worked in anesthesia for the last 30 years," according to her website. She also says she's "acted as the spokesperson to represent her co-workers when discussing the areas of benefits, salary, credentialing requirements, and practice issues with administration."
Key issues
Emmer is endorsed by anti-abortion rights groups and has an A+ rating from the National Rifle Association. He co-sponsored the Preserving Choice in Vehicle Purchases Act, which seeks to bar the federal government from implementing bans on gas-powered vehicles.
According to his campaign website, he supports the growth of cryptocurrency; he's against American farmland purchases by "foreign adversaries"; and is an advocate for increased mental health care options, especially for children, members of law enforcement and farmers.
Hendricks, according to her campaign website, aims to be an advocate for women's rights and seeks to codify Roe v. Wade. She says she wants to fight climate change in part by eliminating the "influence" of "the lobbying of big polluters and big fossil fuel companies."
She is pushing for "common-sense gun safety legislation"; combating food and health care deserts in rural America; and increasing funding for the Veterans Affairs system.
