Dawn Gillman

American politician

Dawn Gillman

Member of the Minnesota House of Representatives from the 17A district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2023
Preceded by	Glenn Gruenhagen

Personal details
Born	(1973-10-08) October 8, 1973 (age 50)
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Brian
Children	5
Residence(s)	Dassel, Minnesota, U.S.
Education	St. Cloud Technical and Community College
Occupation	Business owner Communications consultant Legislator
Website	Government website Campaign website

Dawn Gillman (born October 8, 1973) is an American politician serving in the Minnesota House of Representatives since 2023. A member of the Republican Party of Minnesota, Gillman represents District 17A in central Minnesota, which includes the cities of Hutchinson and Glencoe and parts of McLeod, Meeker, Sibley, and Wright Counties.^[1]^[2]

Early life, education and career

Gillman attended St. Cloud Technical and Community College, earning a dental R.D.A. and C.D.A.^[1] She served six years on the Dassel city council before her election to the state legislature.^[1]

Gillman founded "Let Them Play", an organization advocating for reopening youth sports while statewide COVID-19 restrictions were in place.^[3]^[4] She said, "Our government should not restrict our kids' freedom. It's causing harm to their well-being without factual basis".^[5] The group sued the state of Minnesota, saying the measures violated youth athletes' right to equal protection, but a judge rejected the challenge.^[6]^[7]^[8]

Minnesota House of Representatives

Gillman was elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives in 2022. She first ran after six-term Republican incumbent Glenn Gruenhagen announced he would run for a seat in the Minnesota Senate.^[1]

Gillman serves on the Environment and Natural Resources Finance and Policy, Human Services Finance, and Sustainable Infrastructure Policy Committees.^[1]

Electoral history

2022 Minnesota State House - District 17A^[9]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Dawn Gillman	13,431	70.25
	Democratic (DFL)	Jennifer Carpentier	5,659	29.60
	Write-in		29	0.15
Total votes			19,119	100.0
	Republican hold

Personal life

Gillman lives in Dassel, Minnesota, with her husband, Brian, and has five children.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f "Gillman, Dawn - Legislator Record - Minnesota Legislators Past & Present". www.lrl.mn.gov. Retrieved 2023-02-25.
^ "Rep. Dawn Gillman (17A) - Minnesota House of Representatives". www.house.mn.gov. Retrieved 2023-02-25.
^ Peterson, Roz (2022-07-15). "Actually, it's gonna be the Year of the Republican Women". Minnesota Reformer. Retrieved 2023-08-10.
^ MPR News Staff (2020-09-14). "Sept. 14 update on COVID-19 in Minnesota". MPR News. Retrieved 2023-08-10.
^ Olson, Jeremy. "Youth sports groups question Minnesota COVID-19 restrictions". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2023-08-10.
^ Paulsen, Jim; Klauda, Paul (December 11, 2020). "Let Them Play MN sues Walz seeking to end youth sports pause". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2023-08-10.
^ Klauda, Paul (December 21, 2020). "Minnesota judge denies Let Them Play MN's bid to protest youth sports pause". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2023-08-10.
^ Klauda, Paul (February 8, 2021). "Minnesota judge quickly denies legal challenge to youth sports mask mandate". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2023-08-10.
^ "2022 Results for State Representative District 17A". Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved February 25, 2023.