Keri Heintzeman wins Republican primary for Senate District 6; will face DFLer Denise Siply in special election
(KSTP/ABC 6 News) — Voters headed to the polls in northern Minnesota to fill the seat of former state senator Justin Eichorn.
On Tuesday night, Keri Heintzeman won the Republican primary for Senate District 6 and will go up against the lone DFLer, Denise Siply, on April 29 in a special election.
“I express my heartfelt gratitude to the residents of Senate District 6 for their trust and support in advancing me to the Special Election on April 29th,” said Keri Heintzeman via a press release. “I am deeply honored by their confidence. The upcoming election is critical for restoring fiscal responsibility to our state government and ensuring accountability for the significant waste and fraud under the Walz administration. Throughout the primary, I listened closely to the concerns of District 6 residents, who made it clear they expect me to curb excessive spending, lower taxes, and safeguard their children from the imposition of a radical agenda in our schools by St. Paul liberals. If elected, I pledge to serve Senate District 6 with integrity, defending the values and way of life cherished by our community.”
Eichorn was arrested less than a month ago and charged with attempting to solicit a teenage girl for prostitution. He then resigned from the state senate.
Related: Sen. Justin Eichorn resigns ahead of child solicitation trial
In that short amount of time, eight Republicans and just one DFL member made the deadline to try to win that seat, which covers parts of Cass, Crow Wing and Itasca Counties.
Before the primary, political experts said with this quick of an election turn around, it would likely be name recognition that sets certain candidates apart from the rest, and added that it would likely be a Republican who wins the open seat.
“Once you get to the general election, the Republican will be the heavy favorite. This is strong Trump territory, where Republicans have consistently won legislative races,” says Larry Jacobs, a political expert with the University of Minnesota.
Absentee and mail-in ballots will go out again for the special election later this month, just six days beforehand.