Who is running for former Sen. Eichhorn's seat: List
MN Sen. Eichorn arrest: Candidates seek to replace him in Senate
Jennifer Carnahan is the latest candidate to announce her plans to run for former Minnesota Sen. Justin Eichorn's seat after he resigned following an arrest in a minor sex sting operation in Bloomington.
(FOX 9) - Four people are now running for former Minnesota Sen. Justin Eichorn's District 6 seat after he was arrested for trying to solicit a 17-year-old girl, as part of a prostitution sting targeting people looking for minors.
Who is running for Minnesota Senate District 6?
The candidates for Minnesota Senate District 6. (FOX 9)
Local perspective:
Minnesota Senate District 6 covers parts of Itasca, Cass and Crow Wing counties.
Four people have announced their candidacies for the seat, to replace Eichorn:
Jennifer Carnahan (R)
Carnahan is currently the mayor of Nisswa, Minnesota. She resigned as GOP Chair in 2021 after her husband's death and when it was learned she had ties to Anton "Tony" Lazzaro, who was accused and later convicted of sex trafficking minors.
She won 54.2% of the vote in her mayoral race.
Carnahan announced she would be running for the District 6 seat on Monday morning.
The DFL released the following statement about Carnahan's candidacy to replace Eichorn:
Minnesota DFL Executive Director Heidi Kraus Kaplan said, "It's disgraceful that the Minnesota GOP might replace a Senator who resigned after a child prostitution arrest with a former Minnesota GOP Chair who resigned because of her ties with a child sex trafficker."
Carnahan responded to the statement saying:
"It is absurd and completely false to suggest that my candidacy has any connection to a past Republican donor. He was one of 30,000 donors to the party and countless other Republican candidates, and the only person responsible for his crimes is him. No one else was charged or implicated. Time to move on.
"I resigned as chair of the Minnesota GOP for a few reasons, but mainly to focus on my husband, who was battling a recurrence of cancer. Any suggestion otherwise is both misleading and offensive.
"Voters in my district care about real issues — lowering taxes, improving the economy, and making government work for them — not political smears. I’m focused on what truly matters to Minnesotans, not on distractions from a struggling political party with a dismal 27% national approval rating trying to deflect from their own failures."
Josh Gazelka (R)
Josh Gazelka is the son of retired GOP Minnesota Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka who resigned from his seat 2021.
Josh Gazelka is a marketing executive who recently got an endorsement from the Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association.
He announced his District 6 candidacy on March 21.
Keri Heintzeman (R)
Keri Heintzeman is a small business owner in Nisswa, and her husband, Rep. Josh Heintzeman, has served six terms in the Minnesota House.
She announced her candidacy on March 20.
Emily LeClaire (DFL)
LeClaire recently ran against Keri Heintzeman's husband, Rep. Josh Heintzeman, for Minnesota House District 6B, but lost. She is a lifelong resident of the Brainerd Lakes area.
She announced her candidacy on March 20.
Nicky Hardy (DFL)
Dr. Nicole "Nicky" Hardy announced her candidacy for Minnesota Senate District 6 on March 25.
She's a native Minnesotan who grew up in rural Minnesota. She lives in Pequot Lakes with her husband and their three children.
Hardy's campaign will focus on "establishing economic stability, strengthening rural education, protecting children, improving healthcare accessibility and affordability, and conserving Minnesota’s natural resources. Hardy is committed to fighting for equitable funding for rural schools, supporting job creation through infrastructure projects and sustainable energy, and championing healthcare accessibility and affordability for all — including improved mental health resources and expanded programs for veterans," according to her campaign announcement.
Former Sen. Eichorn arrested
The backstory:
Eichorn was arrested last week after Bloomington police say he was caught in a prostitution sting targeting people looking for minors.
Police said Eichorn was texting with an undercover officer posing as a 17-year-old girl. After negotiating the price and terms of the encounter, police say they arrested Eichorn when he showed up for the meet-up. Police said he had cash, condoms, and two cell phones in his truck.
Days after the arrest, following pressure from both sides of the aisle, Eichorn resigned from the Minnesota Senate.
Bloomington police arrested 13 other people in the same sting.
Eichorn was initially charged in state court, but the case has now been moved to federal court, where he faces charges of attempted coercion and enticement of a minor.
On Monday, Eichorn's wife filed a petition for dissolution of marriage in Itasca County Court.
What's next:
After initially being granted release, Eichorn is now set to return to court on at 10:15 a.m. Wednesday for a new detention hearing.
Prosecutors are requesting the new hearing after they say Eichorn attempted to prevent a laptop from being examined by authorities. The hearing is set for Wednesday morning in federal court.
Gov. Tim Walz is expected to announce a special election to fill District 6's seat in the coming days.