About Jess

Serving our community as our State Representative in St. Paul has been the greatest honor. Everyone starts somewhere, and my story is no different. As a single mom, I am personally familiar with many of the challenges, frustrations, and pains of today’s economy like so many folks in Savage and Burnsville.

I grew up in a trailer park in Lakeville, and I saw every day how working families like mine struggled to make ends meet. Now, I am working hard to provide for my own children, Alexia (17) and Jace (10). 

My daughter was born when I was just 17. I worked two jobs and was renting an apartment in Burnsville where I raised her with the help of family and the community. The life I worked hard to build for us was disrupted when the 2008 financial crisis caused our cost of living to become unsustainable. At first I struggled, however, I was determined to provide the best quality of life for my family. After a few years, I purchased a home in the district and enrolled in college with two young children. I went on to become the first person in my family to graduate from college. I earned my bachelor’s degree in social work from St. Kate's in 2018 where I learned how to combine my passion for community and my care for people into a career that improves people's lives. Now, I am just a few credits away from finishing my graduate degree in Advocacy and Political Leadership.

I believe in a future for Minnesota in which everyone has the opportunity to innovate, succeed, and prosper. My great-grandfather and family owned two small businesses in the district, and I grew up visiting and feeling so proud of them for being entrepreneurs. I want to work to create a strong business economy in Minnesota in which all entrepreneurs, like those in my family, can establish thriving businesses that invest in our community. 

I am running again to serve you because I care about our community. I believe that economic opportunities should be abundant, education should be equitable, and government should be responsible. I am running again to represent our community because I believe every voice counts, matters, and should be heard.

I believe that politics is how we care about each other. Politics is how we solve big and small problems that affect us and our loved ones. It is how we build a framework for the future that we can be proud to build for the next generation. Engaging in the #PoliticsOfCare is how we create solutions that actually improve lives for people at all ages and stages of life. 

I look forward to continuing to work alongside you to build a better Minnesota!