Bobby Joe Champion becomes first Black president of the Minnesota Senate

Tom Gitaa
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Minnesota Senate Democrats have chosen Bobby Jo Champion as the next president of the Minnesota Senate, the first Black person to do so. The announcement was made on Thursday, November 10, 2022. Photo: Courtesy of the Minnesota State Senate

Sen. Bobby Joe Champion of North Minneapolis was on Thursday named as the new Senate president, becoming the first Black person to do so. The Senate president presides over Senate business and ensures members follow parliamentary procedures.

The move came two days after the state elected Black women for the first time to the state Senate and Democrats won back the upper chamber by a one seat majority.

During a media briefing Thursday to announce their new leadership, Sen. Kari Dziedzic, also of Minneapolis, announced she was elected as Senate Majority Leader while Sen. Ann Rest of New Hope will chair the Senate Tax Committee and Sen. John Marty of Roseville becoming the Finance Chair.

“I think one of our biggest things is ensuring that we’re talking to Minnesotans about what their needs are, so we can go to those events and we testify in committee or the floor we can say, ‘Here’s what Minnesotans are telling us’,” Champion said.

Champion has served in the Minnesota Senate Since 2012 after having served two terms in the House after he was first elected in 2008.

He is a practicing attorney and has previously served as an assistant attorney general under two Minnesota attorney generals.

“Even though I have the skills and qualifications, it was not lost on me that the Minnesota Senate has never had a president who was a person of color,” Sen. Champion said.

Author

  • Born and raised in Kenya's coastal city of Mombasa, Tom is the Founder, Editor-in-Chief and Publisher of Mshale which has been reporting on the news and culture of African immigrants in the United States since 1995. He has a BA in Business from Metro State University and a Public Leadership Credential from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. He was the original host of Talking Drum, the signature current affairs show on the African Broadcasting Network (ABN-America), which was available nationwide in the United States via the Dish Network satellite service. On the show, he interviewed Nobel laureates such as 2004 Nobel Peace prize winner, Professor Wangari Maathai, the first woman from Africa to win the peace prize and heads of states. Tom has served and chaired various boards including Global Minnesota (formerly Minnesota International Center), the sixth largest World Affairs Council in the United States. He has previously served as the first Black President of the Board of Directors at Books for Africa. He also serves on the boards of New Vision Foundation and the Minnesota Multicultural Media Consortium. He has previously served two terms on the board of the United Nations Association. An avid runner, he retired from running full marathons after turning 50 and now only focuses on training for half marathons.

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About Tom Gitaa Gitaa

Born and raised in Kenya's coastal city of Mombasa, Tom is the Founder, Editor-in-Chief and Publisher of Mshale which has been reporting on the news and culture of African immigrants in the United States since 1995. He has a BA in Business from Metro State University and a Public Leadership Credential from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. He was the original host of Talking Drum, the signature current affairs show on the African Broadcasting Network (ABN-America), which was available nationwide in the United States via the Dish Network satellite service. On the show, he interviewed Nobel laureates such as 2004 Nobel Peace prize winner, Professor Wangari Maathai, the first woman from Africa to win the peace prize and heads of states. Tom has served and chaired various boards including Global Minnesota (formerly Minnesota International Center), the sixth largest World Affairs Council in the United States. He has previously served as the first Black President of the Board of Directors at Books for Africa. He also serves on the boards of New Vision Foundation and the Minnesota Multicultural Media Consortium. He has previously served two terms on the board of the United Nations Association. An avid runner, he retired from running full marathons after turning 50 and now only focuses on training for half marathons.

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Tom Gitaa
https://www.mshale.com
Born and raised in Kenya's coastal city of Mombasa, Tom is the Founder, Editor-in-Chief and Publisher of Mshale which has been reporting on the news and culture of African immigrants in the United States since 1995. He has a BA in Business from Metro State University and a Public Leadership Credential from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. He was the original host of Talking Drum, the signature current affairs show on the African Broadcasting Network (ABN-America), which was available nationwide in the United States via the Dish Network satellite service. On the show, he interviewed Nobel laureates such as 2004 Nobel Peace prize winner, Professor Wangari Maathai, the first woman from Africa to win the peace prize and heads of states. Tom has served and chaired various boards including Global Minnesota (formerly Minnesota International Center), the sixth largest World Affairs Council in the United States. He has previously served as the first Black President of the Board of Directors at Books for Africa. He also serves on the boards of New Vision Foundation and the Minnesota Multicultural Media Consortium. He has previously served two terms on the board of the United Nations Association. An avid runner, he retired from running full marathons after turning 50 and now only focuses on training for half marathons.