Xp Lee Wins DFL Primary in Special Election House 34B Race
The candidates for the Sept. 16 special election in House District 34B are now set.
Xp Lee, a former Brooklyn Park City Council member, easily won the DFL primary defeating two other candidates, Christian Eriksen and Erickson Saye. He will face Ruth Bittner, the lone Republican in the race.
Lee had 59.2 percent of the vote and 1,186 total votes. Eriksen, a current Brooklyn Park City Council member, had 24.4 percent or 489 votes. Saye, a Hennepin County prosecutor, garnered 330 votes or 16.5 percent.
A son of Hmong refugees, Lee received the DFL endorsement leading up to the primary, helping his candidacy.
Candidates entered the race under very difficult circumstances. The House 34B seat came open after the June 14 murder of the late state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark in their Brooklyn Park home.
“Melissa Hortman wasn’t just a powerful voice at the Capitol—she was our neighbor,” Lee said in a recent press release to CCX News. “Her legacy of principled, visionary leadership continues to inspire me.”
Special elections and special election primaries typically have very low turnout so candidates are pressed to get out the vote.
