Jen McEwen

Jennifer A. McEwen (/mɪˈkjuːɪn/ mih-KEW-in; born May 14, 1977) is a Minnesota politician and member of the Minnesota Senate. A member of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL), she represents Senate District 8, which includes the city of Duluth in St. Louis County.

Jen McEwen
Member of the Minnesota Senate
from the 8th district
Assumed office
January 5, 2021
Preceded byErik Simonson
Personal details
Born (1977-05-14) May 14, 1977
Carbondale, Illinois, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic (DFL)
Other political
affiliations		Democratic Socialists of America[lower-alpha 1]
ResidenceDuluth, Minnesota
Alma materUniversity of Maine
Hamline University School of Law
ProfessionAttorney

Early life, education, and career

McEwen is a Duluth native who had received her B.A. from the University of Maine. She then attended the Hamline University School of Law, earning a J.D. She became an attorney for disabled workers and board president of the Damiano Center, where she has worked with families struggling with food security.[2] McEwen was also previously a public defender.[3] She has two children.[3]

Minnesota State Senate

In 2020, McEwen challenged incumbent Senator Erik Simonson for the DFL endorsement in District 7. She won the endorsement and the primary, with 77% of the vote.[4] She then won the general election against Republican nominee Donna Bergstrom, a second-time candidate who ran against Simonson in 2016, with just over 68% of the vote.[5] McEwen was reelected in 2022.[6] She is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).[7]

McEwen serves on the following committees:[8]

  • Chair: Labor Finance and Policy
  • Vice Chair: Environment and Natural Resources Policy and Legacy Finance
  • Transportation Finance and Policy
  • Energy, Utilities, Environment and Climate Finance and Policy

In the 93rd Minnesota Legislature, as chair of the Labor Committee, McEwen oversaw reforms that required paid sick leave for all employees and banned non-compete agreements.[3] She authored a bill to increase the liability of contractors for wage theft.[3]

She also wrote and sponsored the Protect Reproductive Options Act, which protects abortion rights in Minnesota, after Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022.[9][10] McEwen authored and supported legislation to reestablish passenger rail service between the Twin Cities and Duluth, the Northern Lights Express.[11]

See also

Explanatory notes
  1. Democratic Socialists of America is not a registered political party, instead, it is a political organization for those with democratic socialist ideology.[1]

References
  1. Stein, Jeff (2017-08-05). "9 questions about the Democratic Socialists of America you were too embarrassed to ask". Vox. Archived from the original on 2018-11-11. Retrieved 2022-07-11.
  2. Aug 12th 2020 - 10am, Teri Cadeau | (12 August 2020). "McEwen advances to Minnesota Senate District 7 general election". Duluth News Tribune. Archived from the original on 2021-01-15. Retrieved 2021-01-12.
  3. Nesterak, Max (29 June 2023). "The players who made the big plays: Minnesota lawmakers worth watching". Minnesota Reformer. Archived from the original on 2023-06-29. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  4. "What a progressive DFLer's primary victory in Duluth says (and doesn't say) about politics and environmental policy in northern Minnesota". MinnPost. 2020-08-13. Archived from the original on 2021-01-14. Retrieved 2021-01-12.
  5. "Index - Election Results". electionresults.sos.state.mn.us. Archived from the original on 2021-01-14. Retrieved 2021-01-12.
  6. Passi, Peter (2022-11-09). "McEwen retains Duluth's Senate District 8 seat". Duluth News Tribune. Archived from the original on 2022-11-18. Retrieved 2023-01-28.
  7. Dreier, Peter (2020-12-11). "The Number Of Democratic Socialists In The House Will Soon Double. But The Movement Scored Its Biggest Victories Down Ballot". Talking Points Memo. Archived from the original on 2021-07-26. Retrieved 2021-08-12.
  8. "MN State Senate". www.senate.mn. Archived from the original on 2021-01-13. Retrieved 2021-01-12.
  9. Bierschbach, Briana (28 January 2023). "What you need to know about abortion bills moving at the Minnesota Capitol". Star Tribune. Archived from the original on 2023-01-28. Retrieved 2023-01-28.
  10. Derosier, Alex (2023-01-27). "Minnesota Senate set to vote on abortion rights protections". Detroit Lakes Tribune. Archived from the original on 2023-01-27. Retrieved 2023-01-28.
  11. Derosier, Alex (24 January 2023). "Advocates of Twin Cities-Duluth passenger rail service say they are more optimistic about approval". St. Paul Pioneer Press. Archived from the original on 27 January 2023. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
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