Senator-elect Peggy Flanagan, a citizen of the White Earth Band of Ojibwe in Minnesota and the first Native American woman ever elected to the United States Senate, reflected on her historic victory and outlined her legislative priorities this morning on a press call with Native media.
Flanagan pointed to reversing cuts to Medicaid and SNAP that she has said have been devastating to Minnesota citizens.
“The full impact of these cuts hasn’t been realized yet,” Flanagan said. “If we can help to repair some of the damage this administration has done, that is the top of my list.
Flanagan said she wants to end the war in Iran and rein in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations. Thousands of ICE agents were sent into Minnesota from Dec. 2025 to Feb. 2026. The surge brought civil unrest as agents seemingly operated with impunity while attempting to apprehend undocumented immigrants. Minnesota citizens Renne Good and Alex Pretti were shot and killed by ICE agents weeks apart in January 2026.
“We have been impacted so deeply here in Minnesota, and the chaos, the terrorization, the scooping people up simply based on the color of their skin, including members of the Native community here in Minnesota, and the fact that they’ve been allowed to kill two Minnesotans with zero accountability whatsoever,” Flanagan said.
As well, she said she will work to uphold the federal government’s trust and treaty obligations to federally recognized tribes, pointing specifically to health care in Native communities.
“Funding for Indian Health Service and for healthcare for Native people should be fully funded and forecasted, and that is certainly something that I will advocate for,” she said. “It is just literally just honoring the commitment that the United States government, that the federal government, has made to Native people.”
Flanagan appeared emotional as she addressed her historic win, as well as other historic Native victories across the election board.
“I am thrilled that my sister Deb Holland was elected governor of New Mexico last night, and I’m just very hopeful about the future as we head into 2027,” she said. “I am honored, and so very humbled to be the first Native American woman elected to the United States Senate… The significance of this moment is not lost on me, and I’m really hopeful for what we can do. “
