Xp Lee

  1. Home
  2. Wiki
Xp Lee
Member of the Minnesota House of Representatives
from the 34B district
Incumbent
Assumed office
September 26, 2025[1]
Preceded byMelissa Hortman
Member of the Brooklyn Park City Council for the East District
In office
February 22, 2022 – December 31, 2024
Preceded byLisa Jacobson
Succeeded byAmanda Cheng Xiong
Personal details
BornXiongpao Lee
Nong Khai, Thailand
Political partyDemocratic (DFL)
EducationUniversity of South Carolina, Upstate (BA)

Xiongpao "Xp" Lee (pronounced /ˈɛks ˈpiː/) is an American politician serving since 2025 in the Minnesota House of Representatives. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), Lee has represented District 34B since winning a special election after the assassination of Melissa Hortman. He was previously a city council member in Brooklyn Park.

Early life and career

[edit]

Lee was born in a refugee camp in Nong Khai, Thailand, after his Hmong family was displaced from Laos during the Vietnam War.[2] He grew up in Fresno, California, before moving to South Carolina for his dad’s job as a mechanic.[3] He earned a bachelor's degree in graphic design from the University of South Carolina Upstate.[4]

Lee moved to Minnesota after graduating from college, becoming involved in the nonprofit community and volunteering at the Center for Hmong Arts and Talent.[3] He founded the Hmong American Census Network to work on outreach efforts in the Hmong-American community for the 2020 United States census.[5] He then worked at the Minnesota Department of Health as a community coordinator during the COVID-19 pandemic and as a policy and special programs manager for the Minnesota Council on Foundations.[6]

Political career

[edit]

Brooklyn Park City Council

[edit]

In 2022, Lee ran for a special election to the Brooklyn Park City Council to serve the remainder of Lisa Jacobson's term after she was elected mayor. At the time, he served as a member of the city's planning commission.[7] He placed first with 45.5% of the vote, defeating LaDawn Severin, Benjamin Osemenam, and Abraham Bah. His election marked the first time the city's councilmembers were majority nonwhite.[8]

Lee did not run for reelection to Brooklyn Park City Council in 2024 and was succeeded by Amanda Cheng Xiong.[9]

Minnesota House of Representatives

[edit]
See also: 2025 Minnesota elections § Legislative district 34B special election

Lee won the 2025 special election in District 34B of the Minnesota House of Representatives, taking 60.9% of the vote over Republican nominee Ruth Bittner.[10] The seat became vacant upon the June 14, 2025, assassination of incumbent representative Melissa Hortman. Lee received the DFL's endorsement and won the primary election on August 12.[11] He named healthcare, education, and infrastructure among his top priorities and supports a planned biotechnology district in Brooklyn Park, the conversion of Minnesota State Highway 252 to a freeway, and the planned extension of Metro Transit’s light rail Blue Line.[12]

Electoral history

[edit]

Brooklyn Park City Council (2022)

[edit]
2022 Brooklyn Park City Council East District special election results[13]
Candidate Votes %
Xp Lee 803 45.54%
LaDawn Severin 596 33.81%
Benjamin Osemenam 186 10.55%
Abraham Bah 178 10.10%
Total votes 1,763 100.00%

Minnesota House (2025)

[edit]
2025 Minnesota House of Representatives District 34B special DFL primary election results
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic (DFL) Xp Lee 1,186 59.15%
Democratic (DFL) Christian Eriksen 489 24.39%
Democratic (DFL) Erickson Saye 330 16.46%
Total votes 2,005 100.0%
2025 Minnesota House of Representatives District 34B special election results[10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic (DFL) Xp Lee 4,331 60.9% −2.26
Republican Ruth Bittner 2,785 39.1% +2.37
Write-in 5 0.07% -0.11
Total votes 7,116 100%
Democratic (DFL) hold

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Minnesota House DFL [@mnhouseDFL] (September 26, 2025). "The Minnesota House has officially sworn in XP Lee as its newest Representative!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  2. ^ Coolican, J. Patrick (2025-09-16). "Xp Lee wins special election to replace Melissa Hortman, bringing House back to 67-67 tie". Minnesota Reformer. Retrieved 2025-09-17.
  3. ^ a b Tormoen, Erik; Fischer, Reed (June 28, 2019). "How Minnesota Could Win or Lose the 2020 Census". Minnesota Monthly. Retrieved August 14, 2025.
  4. ^ "Xiongpao "Xp" Lee". Hmong Museum. Retrieved August 14, 2025.
  5. ^ Maciag, Mike (December 17, 2018). "6 Innovative Ways States and Localities Are Preparing for the 2020 Census". Governing. Retrieved August 14, 2025.
  6. ^ Matemba-Mutasa, Panashe (March 11, 2022). "Brooklyn Park's mayoral elections set for possible rematch of 2021 contest won by 2 votes". Mshale. Retrieved August 14, 2025.
  7. ^ Ansari, Hibah (January 20, 2022). "Xiongpao 'Xp' Lee: Brooklyn Park has 'a great mix of everything,' and still has room to grow". Sahan Journal. Retrieved August 14, 2025.
  8. ^ Gitaa, Tom (February 8, 2022). "Xp Lee wins special election for seat on Brooklyn Park City Council". Mshale. Retrieved August 14, 2025.
  9. ^ Ooga, Richard (2025-01-08). "Brooklyn Park City council swears-in its youngest council member". Mshale. Retrieved 2025-09-17.
  10. ^ a b "Special Election Results for State Representative District 34B". Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved 17 September 2025.
  11. ^ Ferguson, Dana (August 12, 2025). "Bittner, Lee move to general election contest for Minnesota House seat". Minnesota Public Radio. Retrieved August 14, 2025.
  12. ^ Minor, Nathaniel (August 13, 2025). "Former Brooklyn Park council member wins DFL primary for slain Rep. Melissa Hortman's House seat". Star Tribune. Retrieved August 14, 2025.
  13. ^ "2022 Special Election Results - Brooklyn Park". Brooklyn Park. 2022-02-08. Archived from the original on 2022-04-12. Retrieved 2025-09-17.
[edit]