DULUTH – U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber easily won his rematch against former state lawmaker Jennifer Schultz in northern Minnesota’s Eighth Congressional District.
“We were victorious tonight,” he told a rowdy crowd at Black Woods Grill and Bar in Proctor, Minn., after his race was called around 11 p.m.
“I often see your faces when I’m casting that vote,” he said, inside the House of Representatives in Washington D.C. “I’m representing you, the 778,000 people in this great district.”
He listed his priorities, including a secured southern border and an improved economy and said “we have to take Minnesota back.”
The celebratory crowd that gathered to feast, drink and cheer Tuesday night included family, friends and a priest. It grew louder and more excited as the night wore on and Stauber’s lead, along with other Republican candidates, increased.
Stauber had stood with his family to address the packed banquet room shortly after polls closed, thanking his wife, children and supporters “for the hard work that got us to this moment again.”
In 2018, Stauber flipped the historically blue district in a close race and has won by wide margins since, defeating Schultz in 2022 with 57% of the vote.
A Duluth native, Stauber is a retired police officer and former professional hockey player. He and his wife, Jodi, have six children and live in Hermantown.