Trina Swanson

Trina Swanson (Democratic Party) is running for election to the U.S. House to represent Minnesota's 8th Congressional District. She is on the ballot in the general election on November 3, 2026. She advanced from the Democratic primary on August 11, 2026.

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I grew up in Duluth and Hermantown, graduating from Hermantown High School. I spent 25 years serving our country in the federal government. I started my federal career at just 18 years old at the Bankruptcy Court, where I worked throughout college and law school. After law school, I started working for U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services. While running immigration operations in three countries, I followed the law and kept our country safe. I walked away from that career rather than compromise my oath. I came home, and now I'm running for Congress because I want to protect the future of northern and central Minnesota, and the people who call it home. I will be the representative who does the actual job for our communities back home.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

1. Affordability

Working families in northern and central Minnesota are doing everything right, but costs keep rising faster than wages. Health care, housing, groceries, childcare, and energy are stretching budgets thin.

Affordability is my top priority. I will focus on lowering prescription drug prices, expanding rural health care access, protecting Medicare and Social Security, strengthening domestic supply chains, and supporting good-paying jobs in mining, manufacturing, and the skilled trades. Economic policy should make it easier to build a life here, not harder.2. Stability

Public service should mean responsibility. The government must be transparent, accountable, and held to a higher standard than the people it serves. Enough with the chaos, refusal to compromise, and weaponization of the government against its people.

I support strong oversight, ethical leadership, and consistent enforcement of the law. Congresspeople should not be allowed to hold or trade stock when in office. No one should be above the law, regardless of position or influence. Restoring trust starts with leaders who are willing to answer for their decisions and act in the public interest.3. Community

Northern and central Minnesota deserves leadership that shows up and delivers results.

That means being present in every county, holding regular, in-person town halls, and working across party lines where possible. It means investing in infrastructure, supporting responsible extraction of critical minerals while protecting the environment, protecting the BWCA, respecting civil rights and human rights, ensuring responsible immigration reform that protects our borders while upholding our values, and standing up for working families.

I’m running to provide leadership that listens, acts, and follows through.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Healthcare and the economy. And where I come from, that’s the same conversation. I believe honest work should still buy you a life with dignity. Yet, I've seen what happens when the systems we count on fail someone you love. I haven’t forgotten what it feels like to sit at the kitchen table and wonder if the math is going to work this month. And that’s what I see as public policy.

When a community loses its clinic, that's an economic crisis. When there's no childcare, that's a workforce crisis. When there's no housing or broadband, young people leave — and that's a crisis for our future. It is time for a Representative that fights to bring Opportunity at Home.