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Kelly Morrison

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Kelly Morrison
Official House portrait of Morrison smiling in front of the U.S. flag, wearing a black blazer jacket.
Official portrait, 2024
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Minnesota's 3rd district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 3, 2025
Preceded byDean Phillips
Member of the Minnesota Senate
from the 45th district
In office
January 3, 2023 – June 6, 2024
Preceded byDavid Osmek (constituency redistricted)
Succeeded byAnn Johnson Stewart
Member of the Minnesota House of Representatives
from the 33B district
In office
January 8, 2019 – January 3, 2023
Preceded byCindy Pugh
Succeeded byAndrew Myers (constituency redistricted)
Personal details
BornKelly Louise Morrison
(1969-02-02) February 2, 1969 (age 57)
Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.
PartyDemocratic (DFL)
SpouseJohn Willoughby
Children3
Parent
EducationYale University (BA)
Boston University (attended)
Case Western Reserve University (MD)
SignatureKelly Morrison's signature
WebsiteHouse website
Campaign website

Kelly Louise Morrison (born February 2, 1969)[1] is an American physician and politician who has served as the U.S. representative for Minnesota's 3rd congressional district since 2025. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party, she served from 2019 to 2023 in the Minnesota House of Representatives and from 2023 to 2024 in the Minnesota Senate.

An obstetrician-gynecologist who practiced in Minnesota for more than 20 years, Morrison was elected to Congress in the 2024 House elections, succeeding Dean Phillips, and is the first OB-GYN who supports abortion rights to serve in Congress. In the House, she sits on the Small Business and Veterans' Affairs Committees and is a founding member of the Congressional Doctors Caucus. Her tenure has focused on health care, opposition to the second Trump administration's tariffs and their effect on small businesses, and oversight of federal immigration enforcement in Minnesota.

Early life, education, and career

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Morrison was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She attended Jefferson Elementary School in Minneapolis and graduated from The Blake School.[1][2][3]

Morrison attended Yale University and graduated cum laude[4] with a Bachelor of Arts in history. She attended Boston University for her pre-medical requirements and graduated with a Doctor of Medicine from the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.[1]

Morrison is a practicing obstetrician-gynecologist.[1][5] She practiced medicine in Minnesota for more than 20 years and worked early in her career at a Veterans Affairs hospital.[6][7]

Minnesota Legislature

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House of Representatives

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Morrison was first elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives in 2018, defeating Republican incumbent Cindy Pugh.[8] She was reelected in 2020, defeating Republican nominee Andrew Myers.[9]

Morrison represented District 33B, including portions of Hennepin and Carver counties.[1] During the 2021-2022 session, she served as an assistant majority leader for the House DFL Caucus.[1]

2019-2020 committee assignments:[1]

  • Health and Human Services Policy
  • Education Finance Division/Health and Human Services Finance Division: Early Childhood Finance and Policy Division
  • Environment and Natural Resources Finance
  • Water Division

2021-2022 committee assignments:[1]

  • Early Childhood Finance and Policy
  • Environment and Natural Resources Finance and Policy
  • Health Finance and Policy
  • Health Finance and Policy: Preventive Health Policy Division

Senate

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Morrison during her tenure in the Minnesota State Senate, 2023

After legislative redistricting in 2022, Morrison announced she would run for the DFL endorsement in the newly created Senate District 45 in the western Twin Cities metropolitan area, which includes the cities of Minnetonka, Mound, Minnetrista, and Orono in Hennepin County.[1] She was endorsed by Speaker of the Minnesota House Melissa Hortman and U.S. Representative Dean Phillips.[10] Morrison won the party's endorsement over incumbent Senator Ann Johnson Stewart.[10] Stewart announced she would not challenge Morrison in the primary and endorsed her.[11] In the general election, Morrison defeated Republican nominee Kathleen Fowke.[12]

Morrison served as an assistant majority leader for the Senate DFL Caucus during the 2023-2024 session.[1] In 2023, she sponsored legislation requiring every Minnesota public school building to keep doses of naloxone on hand to reverse opioid overdoses. The requirement became law and took effect in the 2023-24 school year.[13][14]

Morrison resigned from the Minnesota Senate on June 6, 2024, to focus on her 2024 congressional campaign.[15]

2023-2024 committee assignments:[1]

  • Vice Chair: Transportation
  • Environment, Climate and Legacy
  • Health and Human Services
  • State and Local Government and Veterans

U.S. House of Representatives

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Elections

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2024

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On November 9, 2023, Morrison announced she would run in the Democratic primary for Minnesota's 3rd congressional district after the incumbent, Dean Phillips, decided to run against President Joe Biden in the 2024 Democratic Party presidential primaries. Morrison said she strongly supported Biden, calling him a "transformational president".[16]

Morrison and Phillips had endorsed each other in previous races, and Morrison called Phillips "a good friend of hers".[16] Her announcement emphasized her work passing pro-choice legislation and that she would be the only OB-GYN in Congress if elected.[17] Morrison's campaign had been endorsed by several state legislators, former Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton, and a former president and CEO of Planned Parenthood North Central States.[16][18]

On November 24, 2023, Phillips announced he would not seek reelection to the House regardless of the outcome of his presidential campaign. He also said he would not endorse anyone in the race for his former seat.[19] Morrison thanked Phillips for his service in a statement after his announcement.[19]

A primary was not held after only one candidate per major party filed for office.[20][21] Morrison won the election on November 5, 2024, 58% to 42% over Republican Tad Jude.[22] She was described as the "first pro-choice OB-GYN elected to Congress".[23]

2026

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Morrison is seeking reelection in 2026. She was unopposed for the DFL nomination in the August 11 primary.[24] She faces Republican nominee Tyler Bass, a business owner, in the general election.[25]

Tenure

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Morrison was sworn into the 119th Congress on January 3, 2025.[26] At the start of the session, she joined the House's first Democratic Doctors' Caucus, expressing a hope to form a bipartisan physicians' caucus in the future.[27] She became a founding member of the Congressional Doctors Caucus, launched in March 2025 by six Democratic physicians in the House.[28]

In June 2025, after the assassination of former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, Morrison led a bipartisan House resolution honoring them and condemning political violence, which passed 424-0.[29][30] After the 2025 Annunciation Catholic Church shooting in Minneapolis, she joined the Minnesota congressional delegation in introducing a bipartisan resolution honoring the victims.[31] In November 2025, Morrison introduced the Small Business RELIEF Act, which would exempt small businesses from the tariffs imposed by the second Trump administration and refund those already paid.[32]

In early 2026, Morrison was one of 13 members of Congress who sued the Department of Homeland Security over a policy requiring seven days' notice before lawmakers could visit immigration detention sites.[33] After oversight visits an ICE holding site in Minneapolis, in late January and early February 2026, she reported detainees held in leg shackles and sleeping on floors without beds, and said the facility had no formal medical protocols.[33] DHS disputed such descriptions of conditions at the building.[33][34] In June 2026, she introduced the bipartisan School Access to Naloxone Act with Republican Dave Joyce of Ohio, which would fund grants for K–12 schools to stock naloxone and train staff to administer it.[35]

Committee assignments

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Caucus memberships

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Political positions

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Health care

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Morrison supports abortion rights and has pointed to her work passing abortion-rights legislation in the Minnesota Legislature.[36] She opposed the confirmation of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as secretary of health and human services, and the Doctors Caucus she helped found was organized after its members jointly opposed his nomination.[37] She voted against the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, a Republican budget bill that she said cut spending on Medicaid and food assistance.[38]

Trade

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A member of the House Small Business Committee, Morrison has criticized the second Trump administration's tariffs for their effect on small businesses.[39] In April 2025, she wrote to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent asking that small businesses be exempted, and that November, she led a letter from 18 House Democrats urging Speaker Mike Johnson to allow a floor vote on Senate-passed resolutions to end the tariffs.[39][40]

Gun control

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At a town hall in September 2025, following the Annunciation shooting, Morrison pledged to support a federal ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.[41] She also pledged to support a federal red flag law.[41]

Electoral history

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2018 Minnesota State Representative - House 33B[42]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic (DFL) Kelly Morrison 11,786 50.43
Republican Cindy Pugh
(Incumbent)		 11,570 49.50
2020 Minnesota State Representative - House 33B[43]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic (DFL) Kelly Morrison (Incumbent) 14,202 50.52
Republican Andrew Myers 13,889 49.41
2022 Minnesota State Senator - District 45[44]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic (DFL) Kelly Morrison 27,222 56.27
Republican Kathleen Fowke 21,128 43.67
2024 Minnesota's 3rd congressional district election[45]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic (DFL) Kelly Morrison 240,209 58.4
Republican Tad Jude 170,427 41.5
Write-in 504 0.1
Total votes 411,140 100.0
Democratic (DFL) hold

Personal life

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Morrison and her husband, John Willoughby, have three children. She resides in Deephaven, Minnesota.[1] She is a member of Trinity Episcopal Church in Excelsior, Minnesota.[1]

References

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  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 "Morrison, Kelly L. - Legislator Record - Minnesota Legislators Past & Present". www.lrl.mn.gov. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  2. ↑ Schier, Steven (December 2, 2023). "OPINION EXCHANGE | Six takeaways on Minnesota's critical races in 2024". Star Tribune. Retrieved December 3, 2023.
  3. ↑ Bush, Amelia (February 1, 2024). "Kelly Morrison '87 Runs for Office". The Blake Spectrum. Retrieved November 13, 2024.
  4. ↑ "About Kelly | KMsenate". Archived from the original on June 15, 2024.
  5. ↑ Bierschbach, Briana (July 9, 2018). "Is there a doctor in the (state) House?". Minnesota Public Radio. Retrieved November 8, 2018.
  6. ↑ Martin, Michel (June 11, 2024). "Access to reproductive care inspires many doctors to run for office". NPR. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  7. ↑ Heller, Nina (September 5, 2025). "Why Rep. Kelly Morrison thinks about her patients 'every single day'". Roll Call. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  8. ↑ "2018 Results for State Representative District 33B". electionresults.sos.mn.gov. November 21, 2018. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  9. ↑ "2020 Results for State Representative District 33B". electionresults.sos.mn.gov. November 30, 2020. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  10. 1 2 Lopez, Ricardo (April 11, 2022). "In endorsement race for western suburban district, Rep. Kelly Morrison wins over Sen. Ann Johnson Stewart". Minnesota Reformer. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  11. ↑ Bork, Corey (April 14, 2022). "State Sen. Ann Johnson Stewart Won't Seek Re-election". CCX Media. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  12. ↑ "2022 Results for State Senator District 45". electionresults.sos.mn.gov. December 16, 2022. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  13. ↑ Bakst, Brian (May 4, 2023). "Anti-overdose drug naloxone could soon be standard in Minnesota schools". MPR News. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  14. ↑ Frey, Josh (July 26, 2023). "Overdose medication now required in all Minnesota schools". ABC 6 News. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  15. ↑ Faircloth, Ryan (June 6, 2024). "DFL senator resigns to focus on congressional run, putting control of Minnesota Senate on ballot". Star Tribune. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  16. 1 2 3 Faircloth, Ryan (November 9, 2023). "DFL state Sen. Kelly Morrison to run for Minnesota congressional seat held by Dean Phillips". Star Tribune. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
  17. ↑ Ferguson, Dana (November 9, 2023). "State Sen. Kelly Morrison launches bid for Phillips' U.S. House seat". MPR News. Retrieved December 3, 2023.
  18. ↑ "Endorsements". Kelly Morrison for Congress. Archived from the original on January 6, 2025. Retrieved December 3, 2023.
  19. 1 2 Faircloth, Ryan (November 24, 2023). "Rep. Dean Phillips, running for president, won't seek reelection to Congress". Star Tribune. Retrieved December 3, 2023.
  20. ↑ "Candidate Filings, 2024 State General Election, United States Representative, District 3". Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved June 12, 2024.
  21. ↑ "Minnesota Statute 204D.03". Office of the Revisor of Statutes. State of Minnesota. Retrieved June 12, 2024.
  22. ↑ Bettin, Anthony; Murphy, Esme (November 5, 2024). "Democrat Kelly Morrison wins 3rd Congressional District, CBS News projects". WCCO. Retrieved February 6, 2025.
  23. ↑ "'I do feel a responsibility' as first pro-choice OB-GYN in Congress, says new Dem". Yahoo News. November 16, 2024.
  24. ↑ "Minnesota's primary election 2026: Follow the latest updates". CBS News. August 11, 2026. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  25. ↑ "Minnesota congressional races set after Tuesday primary. Here's who is running in each district". MPR News. August 12, 2026. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  26. ↑ Radelat, Ana (January 3, 2025). "Morrison sworn in as newest Minnesota member of Congress amid celebrations — and some chaos". Minn Post. Retrieved February 6, 2025.
  27. ↑ Van Oot, Torey (February 3, 2025). "Minnesota's newest member of Congress joins first Democratic Doctors Caucus". Axios Twin Cities. Retrieved February 6, 2025.
  28. ↑ Kashiwagi, Sydney (March 24, 2025). "Kelly Morrison and five other Democratic physicians team up to form Congressional Doctors Caucus". Archived from the original on February 16, 2026. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  29. ↑ Heller, Nina (September 5, 2025). "Why Rep. Kelly Morrison thinks about her patients 'every single day'". Roll Call. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  30. ↑ Murphy, Mary (June 26, 2025). "U.S. House passes resolution condemning Minnesota lawmaker shootings". Duluth News Tribune. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  31. ↑ "Minnesota delegation introduces bipartisan resolution honoring Annunciation victims". WDIO.com. September 3, 2025. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  32. ↑ "Rep. Kelly Morrison unveils Small Business RELIEF Act to counter tariffs". FOX 9. FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul. November 29, 2025. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  33. 1 2 3 Johnson, Chloe (February 7, 2026). "Rep. Morrison reports detainees in leg shackles, no clear plan to prevent measles at Whipple". Archived from the original on February 8, 2026. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  34. ↑ Zurek, Erica (February 2, 2026). "Rep. Kelly Morrison describes 'horrifying' conditions inside Whipple building". MPR News. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  35. ↑ Skolnick, David (June 11, 2026). "Joyce reintroduces bill to help reduce opioid overdoses in schools". The Vindicator. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  36. ↑ Ferguson, Dana (November 9, 2023). "State Sen. Kelly Morrison launches bid for Phillips' U.S. House seat". MPR News. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  37. ↑ Kashiwagi, Sydney (March 24, 2025). "Kelly Morrison and five other Democratic physicians team up to form Congressional Doctors Caucus". Archived from the original on February 16, 2026. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  38. ↑ Reese, Emily; Brown, Gretchen; Alvarez, Matthew (May 22, 2025). "'This is a dark day': Rep. Kelly Morrison slams newly-passed House budget bill". MPR News. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  39. 1 2 Jenkins, Jason (April 25, 2025). "Local brewery owners meet with Rep. Morrison to talk tariff impacts". The Sun Post. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  40. ↑ Vondracek, Christopher (November 17, 2025). "Rep. Kelly Morrison calls for House to vote on Trump tariffs". Archived from the original on December 6, 2025. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  41. 1 2 Hildebrandt, Eleanor (September 22, 2025). "Rep. Kelly Morrison pledges support for federal gun restrictions at town hall". Archived from the original on September 22, 2025. Retrieved October 19, 2026.
  42. ↑ "Results for State Representative District 33B". Results for State Representative District 33B. Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
  43. ↑ "Results for State Representative District 33B". Results for State Representative District 33B. Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
  44. ↑ "Results for Senate District 45". Results for State Senator District 45. Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved February 2, 2023.
  45. ↑ Minnesota State Canvassing Board (November 21, 2024). "2024 State Canvassing Board Certificate" (PDF). Minnesota Secretary of State. p. 18. Archived from the original on December 31, 2024. Retrieved January 31, 2025.
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