Angie Craig

Angela Dawn Craig (born February 14, 1972) is an American politician, retired journalist, and former businesswoman. A member of the Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), she has served as the U.S. representative from Minnesota's 2nd congressional district since 2019. The district includes most of the southern suburbs of the Twin Cities and outlying rural areas to the southwest.

Angie Craig
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Minnesota's 2nd district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2019
Preceded by	Jason Lewis
Personal details
Born	Angela Dawn Craig (1972-02-14) February 14, 1972 (age 52) West Helena, Arkansas, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Cheryl Greene ​ (m. 2008)​
Children	4
Education	University of Memphis (BA)
Website	House website
Angie Craig's voice Angie Craig speaks in support of price caps on insulin Recorded March 31, 2022

Born and raised in Arkansas, Craig worked in journalism and corporate communications. She moved to Minnesota in 2005 for a job at St. Jude Medical. Craig first ran for Congress in 2016, losing to Jason Lewis, whom she defeated in their 2018 rematch.^[1]

Craig is the first openly LGBT+ member of Congress from Minnesota and the first lesbian mother to serve in Congress.^[2]

Early life and career

Craig was born in West Helena, Arkansas, in 1972.^[3][4] She graduated from Nettleton High School in Jonesboro^[5] and earned a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Memphis.^[6]

After college, Craig interned at The Commercial Appeal and became a full-time reporter.^[7] She lived in London from 2002 through 2005,^[4][8] and worked at St. Jude Medical in human resources and communications from 2005 to 2017.^[9][10][11]

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2016

See also: 2016 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota § District 2

 

Angie Craig in 2016

In 2016, Craig ran for the United States House of Representatives in Minnesota's 2nd congressional district.^[12] She announced her candidacy before Republican incumbent John Kline announced his retirement.^[10] She faced no opposition in the Democratic primary. In the general election, she faced former conservative talk show host Jason Lewis.^[12] She lost by fewer than 7,000 votes.

2018

See also: 2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota § District 2

Craig sought a rematch with Lewis in 2018.^[9] As in 2016, she was unopposed in the Democratic primary. In the general election, she defeated Lewis, whose candor was felt to be his eventual undoing. Regarding slavery, for instance, he said in 2016, "If you don't want to own a slave, don't, but don't tell other people they can't."^[13]

Craig is the first openly lesbian mother to be elected to Congress, the first woman to be elected in Minnesota's 2nd district, and the first openly gay person elected to Congress from Minnesota.^[14][15] She received 52.6% of the vote, winning three of the six counties in the district.^[16][17] When she took office on January 3, 2019, she became the first DFLer to represent this district since it was reconfigured as a south suburban district in 2003.

2020

See also: 2020 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota § District 2

In a verified recording, Legal Marijuana Now Party nominee Adam Weeks said that Republican operatives offered him $15,000 to run for Congress in the 2nd district in order to "pull votes away" from Craig. Weeks said, "They want me to run as a third-party, liberal candidate, which I'm down. I can play the liberal, you know that."^[18][19] Leaders of prominent pro-marijuana legalization groups Minnesotans for Responsible Marijuana Regulation, Sensible Change Minnesota, and Minnesota NORML condemned the GOP strategy as "unconscionable".^[18]

In late September, Weeks died of a drug overdose, throwing the election into chaos. Minnesota law requires a special election if a major-party nominee dies within 79 days of Election Day. The law was enacted to prevent a repeat of the circumstances of the 2002 U. S. Senate election, in which incumbent Paul Wellstone died 11 days before the general election. Since the Legal Marijuana Now Party was a major party in Minnesota (by virtue of its 2018 candidate for state auditor winning five percent of the vote), the 2nd District race was set to be postponed to February 9, 2021.^[20] Craig sued to keep the election on November 3, arguing that the requirement for a special election could leave the 2nd district without representation for almost a month, and also violated federal election law.^[21] Republican nominee Tyler Kistner joined the Minnesota Secretary of State as a defendant. The federal judge hearing the case ruled for Craig, noting that federal election law barred moving the date of House elections in all but a few circumstances. Kistner appealed to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, which also sided with Craig. The appeals court held that the death of a candidate from a party with "modest electoral strength" could not justify postponing the election. After Kistner's appeal to the Supreme Court was rejected, the election was cleared to continue as scheduled on November 3.^{[19][22][23][24][25]}

2022

See also: 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Minnesota § District 2

In the 2022 election, Craig defeated Republican nominee Tyler Kistner in a rematch of the 2020 election^[26] with 51% of the vote.^[27]

Tenure

 

Craig at a campaign event in Apple Valley, Minnesota

According to the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University, Craig held a Bipartisan Index Score of 0.3 in the 116th United States Congress for 2019, placing her 114th out of 435 members.^[28]

During Donald Trump's presidency, Craig voted in line with Trump's stated position 5.5% of the time.^[29] As of June 2022, Craig had voted in line with Joe Biden's stated position 100% of the time.^[30]

On February 25, 2022, Craig introduced the Affordable Insulin Now Act, a bill intended to cap out-of-pocket insulin prices at $35 per month. The bill passed the House.^[31][32]

On April 27, 2023, Craig's congressional office announced that its staff would no longer be required to have bachelor's degrees.^[33]

Craig has played a role in negotiations for the 2024 United States federal budget, in which the far-right Freedom Caucus has demanded deep spending cuts and refused to work with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. In response to the intraparty dispute, on September 20, 2023, Craig introduced the MCCARTHY (My Constituents Cannot Afford Rebellious Tantrums, Handle Your) Shutdown Act, which proposes that members' pay be withheld for each day that a federal government shutdown lasts.^[34]

Craig voted with President Joe Biden's stated position 100 percent of the time in the 117th Congress, according to FiveThirtyEight.^[35]

COVID-19 policy

On February 1, 2023, Craig was one of 12 Democrats to vote for a resolution to end the COVID-19 national emergency.^[36][37]

Committee assignments

For the 118th Congress:^[38]

• Committee on Agriculture
  • Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development
  • Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities, Risk Management, and Credit
• Committee on Energy and Commerce
  • Subcommittee on Communications and Technology
  • Subcommittee on Health

Caucus memberships

• Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus (Co-chair)^[39]
• Congressional Progressive Caucus (2019-2021)^{[citation needed]}
• New Democrat Coalition^[40]
• House Pro-Choice Caucus^[41]
• Congressional Coalition on Adoption^[42]

Political positions

Craig voted to provide Israel with support following the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.^[43][44]

Electoral history

Minnesota's 2nd congressional district, 2022^[45]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic (DFL)	Angie Craig (incumbent)	165,581	50.87
	Republican	Tyler Kistner	148,578	45.65
	Legal Marijuana Now	Paula M. Overby	10,730	3.30
		Write-in	585	0.18
Total votes			325,474	100.0
	Democratic (DFL) hold

Minnesota's 2nd congressional district, 2020^[46]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic (DFL)	Angie Craig (incumbent)	204,031	48.18
	Republican	Tyler Kistner	194,466	45.92
	Legal Marijuana Now	Adam Charles Weeks	24,693	5.83
		Write-in	270	0.06
Total votes			423,460	100.0
	Democratic (DFL) hold

Minnesota's 2nd congressional district, 2018^[47]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic (DFL)	Angie Craig	177,958	52.66
	Republican	Jason Lewis (incumbent)	159,344	47.15
		Write-in	666	0.20
Total votes			337,968	100.0
	Democratic (DFL) gain from Republican

Minnesota's 2nd congressional district, 2016^[48]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Jason Lewis	173,970	46.95
	Democratic (DFL)	Angie Craig	167,315	45.16
	Independence	Paula Overby	28,869	7.79
		Write-in	360	0.10
Total votes			370,514	100.0
	Republican hold

Personal life

In 2020, Craig moved to Prior Lake, Minnesota, after living in Eagan, Minnesota, for nearly 10 years.^[49] She and her wife, Cheryl Greene, were married in 2008 and have four sons, who were teenagers during her first run for Congress in 2016.^[50][51]

Craig is a Lutheran.^[52]

Physical assault

Craig was physically held hostage and assaulted in the elevator of her Washington, D.C., apartment building on February 9, 2023.^[53] She said of this:

I got attacked by someone who the District of Columbia has not prosecuted fully over the course of almost a decade, over the course of 12 assaults before mine that morning... And so I think we have to think about how in the world can we make sure that we're not just letting criminals out... I mean, it wasn't even in every instance that he got 10 days or 30 days. Many times, the charges were completely dropped before any justice was achieved at all... I was assault number 13 on his record... And I'm gonna do everything in my power to make sure there's not a 14, a 15, a 20... If you throw somebody in jail for 10 days and think, "There's your punishment, and we're gonna let you right back on the street," what the hell do you think's gonna happen?^[54]

See also

• List of LGBT members of the United States Congress
• Women in the United States House of Representatives

References

1. Beifuss, John. "Meet the former Commercial Appeal reporter who's now in Congress". The Commercial Appeal. Retrieved March 14, 2022.
2. Wiener, Jon (September 2, 2016). "The Terrible Mini-Trump of Minnesota—and the Progressive Who's Running Against Him". The Nation. ISSN 0027-8378. Retrieved March 14, 2022.
3. "Candidate Conversation – Angie Craig (DFL) | News & Analysis | Inside Elections". www.insideelections.com. Retrieved November 16, 2018.
4. Montgomery, David (October 7, 2016). "Angie Craig: Adoption struggle shaped 2nd District candidate". Twincities.com. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
5. "Angie Craig, former Memphis Commercial Appeal reporter, now in Congress". Commercialappeal.com. November 9, 2018. Retrieved December 20, 2018.
6. . Hastings Star Gazette. Archived from the original on November 8, 2018. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
7. Renzetti, Jackie (July 25, 2018). . Hastings Star Gazette. Archived from the original on October 18, 2018. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
8. Gessner, John (September 22, 2016). "Eagan resident Angie Craig looks to Washington". hometownsource.com. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
9. Rao, Maya (August 27, 2018). "In rematch with Jason Lewis, Angie Craig seeks stronger connection with voters". StarTribune.com. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
10. "Angie Craig officially announces run against Rep. Kline". MinnPost. April 6, 2015. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
11. "Second District race: What it would mean to elect a former medical device executive to Congress". MinnPost. January 26, 2016. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
12. "It's Jason Lewis vs. Angie Craig in what's likely to be one of the most-watched congressional races in the country". MinnPost. August 13, 2016. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
13. The Terrible Mini-Trump of Minnesota and the Progressive Who’s Running Against Him, Star Tribune, John Weiner, September 2, 2016. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
14. "LGBTQ Candidates Record Historic Midterm Wins In Rainbow Wave". Huffingtonpost.com. November 7, 2018. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
15. Romi Oltuski (October 21, 2018). "If She Wins, Angie Craig Will Be the First Lesbian Mom in Congress". InStyle. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
16. "Minnesota Election Results: Second House District". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 31, 2018.
17. "MN Election Results". electionresults.sos.state.mn.us. Retrieved December 31, 2018.
18. Before death, pro-marijuana candidate reportedly said GOP recruited him to "pull votes away" from Minnesota Democrat, CBS News, October 29, 2020. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
19. Bierschbach, Briana (October 28, 2020). "Pot party candidate said GOP recruited him to 'pull votes' from Minnesota Democrat". Minneapolis Star Tribune. No. Volume XXXIX No. 207. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
20. Van Berkel, Jessie (September 25, 2020). "Second Congressional District race delayed after death of Legal Marijuana Now candidate". Minneapolis Star Tribune. No. Volume XXXIX No. 174. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
21. Van Berkel, Jessie (September 28, 2020). "Rep. Angie Craig files lawsuit over delay of Second Congressional District race". Minneapolis Star Tribune. No. Volume XXXIX No. 178. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
22. Van Oot, Torey; Condon, Patrick (October 10, 2020). "Judge blocks delay of Minnesota congressional race". Minneapolis Star Tribune. No. Volume XXXIX No. 189. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
23. Van Berkel, Jessie (October 23, 2020). "Minnesota's 2nd Congressional District election stays on Nov. 3, Appeals Court rules". Minneapolis Star Tribune. No. Volume XXXIX No. 203. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
24. Brian Bakst (October 9, 2020). "Judge: Winner of CD2 race must be decided in November". Minnesota Public Radio.
25. Brian Bakst (October 23, 2020). "Appeals court rules 2nd district race should proceed". Minnesota Public Radio.
26. "Angie Craig vs. Tyler Kistner in 2nd Congressional District rematch". kare11.com. November 4, 2022.
27. "Minnesota Second Congressional District Election Results". The New York Times. November 8, 2022. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
28. "The Lugar Center – McCourt School Bipartisan Index House Scores 116th Congress First Session (2019)" (PDF). Georgetown University. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
29. "Tracking Congress In The Age Of Trump – Angie Craig". ABC News. January 30, 2017. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
30. Bycoffe, Anna Wiederkehr and Aaron (April 22, 2021). "Does Your Member Of Congress Vote With Or Against Biden?". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved June 1, 2022.
31. Craig, Angie (February 25, 2022). "H.R.6833 - 117th Congress (2021-2022): Affordable Insulin Now Act". www.congress.gov. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
32. Tribune, Hunter Woodall Star. "U.S. House passes Rep. Angie Craig's bill limiting insulin costs". Star Tribune. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
33. Spewak, Danny (April 27, 2023). "Rep. Angie Craig drops college requirement for staffers". kare11.com. Archived from the original on April 28, 2023. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
34. Hall, Madison. "A Democratic representative just introduced the 'My Constituents Cannot Afford Rebellious Tantrums, Handle Your Shutdown Act' to halt congressional pay during a government shutdown". Business Insider. Retrieved September 22, 2023.
35. Bycoffe, Aaron; Wiederkehr, Anna (April 22, 2021). "Does Your Member Of Congress Vote With Or Against Biden?". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
36. "House passes resolution to end COVID-19 national emergency". February 2023.
37. "On Passage - H.J.RES.7: Relating to a national emergency declared by". August 12, 2015.
38. "Angie Craig". Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
39. "Join the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus – DearColleague.us". Retrieved February 8, 2019.
40. . New Democrat Coalition. Archived from the original on February 8, 2018. Retrieved February 5, 2018.
41. "Members". House Pro Choice Caucus. August 19, 2021.
42. "Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute".
43. Demirjian, Karoun (October 25, 2023). "House Declares Solidarity With Israel in First Legislation Under New Speaker". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
44. Washington, U. S. Capitol Room H154; p:225-7000, DC 20515-6601 (October 25, 2023). "Roll Call 528 Roll Call 528, Bill Number: H. Res. 771, 118th Congress, 1st Session". Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved October 30, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
45. "State General Election 2022 − Results for U.S. Representative District 2". Minnesota Secretary of State. November 9, 2022. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
46. "State General Election 2020 − Results for U.S. Representative District 2". Minnesota Secretary of State. November 12, 2020. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
47. "State General Election 2018 – Results for U.S. Representative District 2". Minnesota Secretary of State. November 6, 2018. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
48. "State General Election 2016 – Results for U.S. Representative District 2". Minnesota Secretary of State. November 8, 2016. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
49. "About". Representative Angie Craig. December 3, 2012. Retrieved May 23, 2022.
50. The Terrible Mini-Trump of Minnesota—and the Progressive Who’s Running Against Him, The Nation, Jon Weiner, September 2, 2016. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
51. Angie Craig [@RepAngieCraig] (October 25, 2022). "What a journey together. Happy 14th wedding anniversary today to the best wife, mother and grandmother" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
52. "Religious affiliation of members of 118th Congress" (PDF). Pew Research Center. (PDF) from the original on March 16, 2023. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
53. Rep. Angie Craig assaulted in apartment building elevator, her office says, CNBC, Kevin Breuninger, February 9, 2023. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
54. Democrat rep calls out DC's soft-on-crime policies after attack by repeat offender: 'I was assault number 13', Fox News, February 15, 2023

External links

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Angie Craig.

• Congresswoman Angie Craig official U.S. House website
• Campaign website

• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Legislation sponsored at the Library of Congress
• Profile at Vote Smart
• Appearances on C-SPAN

U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Jason Lewis	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Minnesota's 2nd congressional district 2019–present	Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by Ben Cline	United States representatives by seniority 237th	Succeeded by Dan Crenshaw