DFL picks Thurman, Jensen, Morgan in District 56
Democrats in the newly drawn state Senate District 56 have endorsed Leon Thurman of Burnsville for the Senate and Dave Jensen of Savage for the House of Representatives in District 56A.
The endorsements were made Tuesday (May 29) at a meeting of the Senate District 56 DFL Central Committee held at Burnhaven Library in Burnsville.
Thurman will face first-term Republican Sen. Dan Hall of Burnsville in November. Jensen will face first-term Republican Rep. Pam Myhra of Burnsville.
District 56 DFLers endorsed former Rep. Will Morgan of Burnsville for the District 56B seat at their convention in April. Morgan will face Roz Peterson of Lakeville.
The new Senate district, a product of this year’s redistricting, encompasses most of Savage and Burnsville and a portion of Lakeville. District 56A is mostly Savage, with a small portion of west-central Burnsville.
Thurman, who has been a public school teacher, college professor and community educator, has lived in Minnesota since 1977 and in Burnsville for 22 years. A native of Knoxville, Tenn., Thurman has taught at the MacPhail Center for the Arts in Minneapolis and has served as a specialist voice educator for the Fairview Voice Center of the University of Minnesota Medical Center.
Thurman told delegates Tuesday he plans to work for a sound fiscal foundation for state government and to provide high-quality education to prepare Minnesota children for 21st century, living-wage jobs, according to a DFL news release.
Jensen, a nurse practitioner, has been a clinical supervisor for HealthPartners Geriatrics for the past six years. A graduate of the University of North Dakota with a degree in nursing, Jensen earned his nurse practitioner certification at St. Catherine’s University.
A native of Kindred, N.D., Jensen and his wife of 27 years, Michele, have two adult children, Mara and Sam.
Jensen said he supports strong public education, the restoration of Minnesota’s infrastructure and health care for all Minnesotans.
