U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum defeated two repeat challengers Tuesday to keep the seat she's held in Congress for nearly two decades.
The Democratic congresswoman will serve a 10th term representing the state's Fourth District, which covers St. Paul and surrounding east metro cities including Roseville, Maplewood and Woodbury. In a repeat of the 2016 election, she faced Republican Greg Ryan, owner of a plumbing business, and Susan Pendergast Sindt of the Legal Marijuana Now Party, a former high school science teacher who now runs a business that sells nicotine liquids for electronic cigarettes.
McCollum serves on the House Appropriations Committee and is a supporter of the Affordable Care Act, tighter gun laws and immigration policies that protect children brought into the country illegally. She is the state's second-longest-tenured member of Congress, and was previously a four-term member of the Legislature.
In a statement, Minnesota DFL Party chairman Ken Martin praised McCollum as "one of Congress' fiercest advocates for government transparency, clean environment and a fairer economy."
McCollum's win extends the party's hold on her seat; a Democrat has represented the Fourth District since 1949.
