Rick Hansen (politician)


Rick Hansen is a Minnesota politician and member of the Minnesota House of Representatives who represents District 52A, which includes all or portions of the cities of West St. Paul, South St. Paul, Mendota Heights, Mendota, Lilydale, and Eagan in Dakota County, which is in the southeastern part of the Twin Cities metropolitan area.

Early life, education, and career

Hansen was raised on a farm in rural Minnesota. He graduated magna cum laude from Upper Iowa University in Fayette, with a BS degree in Biology, and later earned a MS degree in Soil Management from Iowa State University in Ames. He worked for Harmony Cedar, Inc., a company that makes handcrafted Amish furniture, and also worked for Minnesota's Department of Agriculture from 1998 to 2005. He served on the Dakota County Soil and Water Conservation District Board of Managers from 1996 to 2005.

Minnesota House of Representatives

Hansen was first elected to the House in 2004, and was re-elected in 2006, 2008, 2010, and 2012. In 2008, he was appointed to the Minnesota Lessard Outdoor Heritage Council by House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher.

Personal life

Hansen is married and has one child.