With her victory in November, Kamala Harris would become the first Black woman, South Asian, and Native American governor in the United States.
Peggy Flanagan, a member of the White Earth Band of Ojibwe, is “currently the country’s highest ranking Native woman elected to executive office,” as stated in her official biography. She is the Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota. On Tuesday, Harris revealed that Tim Walz will be her running mate for vice president. If Walz were to become president, Flanagan would become the first Native American woman and the first woman to serve as governor of Minnesota.
Flannagan, 44, served for three years as a representative for Minnesota until being elected lieutenant governor in 2018.
Flanagan invested “in equity in bonding to support community projects led by and for people of color,” increased assistance for low-income families in the areas of food, cash, and child care, and created the first Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives Office during her tenure as Lieutenant Governor, according to her office. She also increased assistance for low-income families overall.
In accordance with the Minnesota Constitution, Flanagan would succeed Walz as governor if Walz were to assume the office of vice president in January.
Serving the people of Minnesota has been an honor throughout her tenure here, she told MinnPost last week. “It would remain the same.”