Hermantown 2026 Election Guide

Incumbent

KAXE did not receive a response from this candidate.

Age on Election Day: 32

Employment: Northland Neurology - Medical Coordinator

Please share any prior experience and education that you believe qualifies you for office.

My professional experience gives me a strong sense of teamwork and communication skills. I work well with a team to solve problems and am able to find innovated ways to move forward on projects. I believe that communication is key to providing the community what they want in a leader.

Why are you running?

I am running to give my community a voice. Much of the community feels unheard. I want to bridge the gap in communication between the current elected officials and the community that we have a privilege of serving.

Why should voters elect you?

I have a different perspective and different ideas. I don’t have a history in politics or government. What I do have though is a drive to make my community members proud of the people they have elected and trusted to lead this community. I have a drive to do right by this community. I want to make a difference is how this community is viewed. Hermantown is the City of Quality Living and it is important that we remember that.

Please describe the roles and responsibilities of the office you are running for.

Pass local ordinances, assist in managing the city budget, and listen to community concerns.

Name a public leader you admire and explain why.

I believe that I most admire Abraham Lincoln as far as public leaders go. He was not afraid to go against the grain and do what he believed was right despite what others though. He lead America through a civil war and kept the country together. I believe that strength shows that even in today’s struggles with internal revolution that as things change and evolve that it doesn’t mean failure. It means moving forward and policies changing for the better. Abraham Lincoln I believe was ahead of his time with his open mind and belief that everyone was equal. “ with malice toward none, with charity for all”

What are the three biggest issues your city is facing?

Communication between the city council and community, budget concerns, and the data center.

Which of those three issues is most important to you, and how would you address it if elected?

The communication between the city council and the community. If I am elected I will make sure that any questions ask of me from the community are addressed. I will also not put myself in a position where I am unable to answer the community questions.

What steps, if any, would you take to support or oppose data centers?

I would try to put a moratorium in place to stop the data center while more studies are completed to see what effects they have are. Many cities, counties, and states across the US are implementing these.

Many Northern Minnesota cities are experiencing tightening budgets. Where would you propose making cuts, if needed?

Administrative and internal overhead.

KAXE did not receive a response from this candidate.

Contributed

Age on Election Day: 40

Employment: I took a step back from my teaching career in the summer of 2023 after the birth of my son. Since then I’ve been home with my kids (now ages 7 and 3), guiding and supporting them in their development. From time management and goal setting, to active listening and communication, to fostering empathy and patience, to cultivating a supportive and safe environment to share thoughts, ask questions, and make mistakes, to creatively mediating and resolving conflict, to setting boundaries and expectations, to accountability and repair, pivoting when something is not going as planned, and coordinating and planning activities. The role of a teacher is always at play in my work as a mother. When revelations about the Hermantown staff’s management of the planned hyper scale data center came to light, I knew my work as provider, caregiver, and community advocate were being called upon. These roles have created the foundational skills necessary to rise up and speak out for our community at this pivotal moment.

Please share any prior experience and education that you believe qualifies you for office.

For 20 years I have spent my career in environmental and early childhood education. I hold a Bachelor’s degree in Fisheries and Wildlife Biology. After moving to Hermantown in 2015, I taught at Hartley Nature Preschool for seven rewarding years, during which time I also obtained my MN K-6 teaching license through the College of St. Scholastica’s Graduate Teaching Licensure program. I have been involved in a grant funded program with a group of local educators and indigenous mentors. Our group has helped co-construct a body of knowledge, designed to support early childhood educators in an outdoor setting, with meaningful and authentic ways to uplift indigenous histories, world views, and learning approaches into our teaching practices; creating more equitable, trauma informed, and culturally sustaining pathways to support learning for all children. This work has been published in peer reviewed journals and shared with educators nationwide.

Why are you running?

My life experience has created the foundation to lead with conviction and determination. We need a strong voice who will immediately start representing your priorities. We need a councilor that will think critically, independently, and advocate for the community. Democracy does not take place without you. I want to enact change that prioritizes your interests, concerns, and to ensure voices are being heard. Through my work as a licensed educator and community advocate, I have built trust with residents and strong working relationships with neighboring communities. The community needs to be a part of the decision making. We can empower a thriving business community while at the same time prioritizing people over profits, constituents over corporations, and protecting residents’ quality of life, without compromising Hermantown’s country living and small-town community feel. While the world is changing and evolving, we can respond without sacrificing our identity.

Why should voters elect you?

I am committed to earning your trust, serving with transparency, and representing the people of Hermantown. New perspectives are so important to equitably reflect the lived experiences for the people of Hermantown. The community’s voice and well-being should be at the heart of municipal planning. The decisions we make today impact our future. Hermantown has an incredible opportunity to promote its own vitality while at the same time ensuring our rural character and identity continues for generations to come. We need policies, fiscal accountability, and growth that fit with community held values. Your experience matters and I want to act on the things that are important to you.

Please describe the roles and responsibilities of the office you are running for.

First and most importantly, it is the role of a city councilor to represent the people of their community. I am here to serve you, the people of Hermantown. It is my role to promote growth for all stages of life that aligns with our community held values, budget responsibly - spending within our means, prioritizing expenditures, and all while recognizing the decisions made today have a real and true impact on our future. As I focus on soliciting community feedback, honoring our natural environment, and transparency in leadership, our community's trust in its leadership can grow again. Most importantly, I want to hear from my constituents. What is important to you? Where do you need to see change? Where do you need support?

Name a public leader you admire and explain why.

I am deeply appreciative of the role local politics play in shaping communities. This was evident with the 22 Non-Disclosure Agreements signed related to Google’s Project Loon, some by St. Louis County Commissioners. It is not in the interest of democracy for elected officials to engage in business requiring an NDA, withholding vital information from the public. I have deep gratitude, admiration, and respect for St. Louis Commissioner Ashley Grimm. She bravely and publicly condemned her colleagues who signed NDA’s. To further advocate for her community and hold true to her values, she brought forward a resolution to ban commissioners from signing NDA’s. While the resolution did not pass, history favors the bold. I could not be more proud of Commissioner Grimm and her willingness to speak truth to power. As a mother of young children, she brings vital perspectives and lived experiences to influence policy making.

What are the three biggest issues your city is facing?

Google’s proposed 1.6 million square foot hyperscale data center, which was long kept a secret from the public. The resulting breakdown of trust between the City of Hermantown and residents. The Home Rule Charter Petition, reshaping how the city governs itself.

Which of those three issues is most important to you, and how would you address it if elected?

Over the last year, the trust between the city’s leadership and its citizens has been shattered. To repair that trust and move forward together, clear and honest communication is paramount for building and maintaining relationships with the public. That said, it will be a monumental challenge to rebuild trust, if not impossible, unless the citizens' fight against the hyper-scale data center is acknowledged and resolved. This is the wrong project in the wrong location, period. With the recent influx of AI hyperscale data centers all over the nation, this massive unprecedented development, with global implications, places a real and direct burden on local communities, especially given the short life span of these hyper-scale facilities (15-20 years). This development continues to move forward in Hermantown despite overwhelming community feedback in opposition to the project. Constituents tell me repeatedly that we need a data center moratorium and I could not agree more.

What steps, if any, would you take to support or oppose data centers?

The first thing I would like to accomplish once elected is bringing forward a resolution to enact a one-year moratorium on data centers in Hermatown. I am currently researching data center moratoriums other cities, townships, and counties in Minnesota have passed. We need to hit pause in order to establish a transparent, community-driven process to evaluate this kind of development. We need time to investigate the enormous impacts this rising industry can have on our community and amend the ordinance framework to create regulatory safeguards, protecting both residents and the environment. The current approval process has become a runaway train and we need to stop it. Citizens are weighing in at every council meeting and not feeling heard. That must change. I envision a city that gives residents agency, this decision belongs to us!

Many Northern Minnesota cities are experiencing tightening budgets. Where would you propose making cuts, if needed?

Hermantown is at its best when residents are engaged and involved. We need resident feedback and experience to guide city leadership as we make decisions about where the finances of the city should be invested. As a citizen, I have felt the frustration of feeling as though I’m not represented in the decisions of the city. We need councilors who can work together with the people who they represent to find solutions to the fiscal needs of the city. There are many examples of this around our country, where we see that a group of people who are determined to work together to solve common challenges cities face, are able to discover solutions that move a city forward, even when funds are tight. The city of Hermantown can do that as well.