Last Friday, St. Paul mayor Khaoly Her was sworn in after a contentious election that saw her unseat incumbent Melvin Carter in a shock upset.
Her, who used to work for Carter, is the first Asian American and first woman to become mayor of St. Paul, and she has not shied away from controversy in her previous role as a State Representative in the Minnesota legislature, where she served from 2019 to 2025.
The newly sworn-in Mayor has staked out positions on issues that could lead to confrontations with the state’s Republicans and on the issue of immigration, Republican President Donald Trump, stating that she would be open to using St. Paul’s local police to confront ICE agents.
“If there’s an overreach like the Trump administration has been doing in other cities and states across the country, our law enforcement should actually be standing between law-abiding citizens and ICE who is just terrorizing our communities. I do believe that and that’s something that I would stand behind,” she said prior to being elected mayor.
Last year, Her stated that she and her parents were “illegal” in the United States during a debate about healthcare benefits for illegal immigrants, a shocking statement that drew questions about her legal status in the country. (RELATED: Walz Threatens to Activate National Guard to Confront ICE Agents)
Her subsequently issued a statement clarifying that her and her parents are citizens, though some continued to question her father’s truthfulness on immigration documents and why she felt it was necessary to say that she was “illegal” in the country.
Her, who served three terms in the Minnesota legislature, has a voting record that reflects her pro-immigrant sentiment, including voting for legislation that gave drivers’ licenses to illegal immigrants.
She has voted for several other controversial bills as well, such as a bill declaring racism a public health crisis during Covid-19 and a bill that made Minnesota a transgender ‘sanctuary state’.
Before serving in the state legislature, Her was a community organizer who directed an Hmong women’s organization and ran a PAC that advocated for the Hmong community’s issues in Minnesota. (RELATED: Taxpayer Costs of Illegal Immigration Continue to Surge Nationwide)
Already, city attorney Lyndsey Olson, who was one of the oldest members of Mayor Carter’s team, announced her resignation on Monday, indicating that Her’s style of governance may rankle some civil servants in the city.
