Capitol View®

GOP party chair to wed congressman-elect

jimjennifer
Rep.-elect Jim Hagedorn and Party Chairwoman Jennifer Carnahan in Minneapolis. (Photo via carnahanmarrieshagedorn.com)

Minnesota Republican Congressman-elect Jim Hagedorn and Republican Party Chairwoman Jennifer Carnahan are getting married this weekend in California.

The couple, who first met when Carnahan was running for her leadership position in 2017, will wed Saturday at the Canary Hotel in downtown Santa Barbara.

"I'm looking forward to it and I'm a very lucky guy to have met Jennifer," Hagedorn said this week.

Hagedorn will head to Congress in January to represent Minnesota's 1st Congressional District, after prevailing in a tight race this fall against Democratic candidate Dan Feehan. He replaces Democrat Rep. Tim Walz, who left the seat to launch a successful bid for the governor's office.

Carnahan is serving her first term as chair, a newcomer to the state party who surprised everyone when she defeated more established candidates for the job.

News of their relationship initially caused a stir in southern Minnesota, where some potential candidates for the 1st District wondered if it gave him an advantage in getting the party's backing. At the time, Carnahan noted that the state party doesn't play a role in endorsing congressional candidates, that's up to leadership and activists in each district.

-Reporter Mark Zdechlik contributed to this post