# Mary Franson *Minnesota state legislator (Republican), member of the Minnesota House of Representatives* Mary Danielle Franson (born March 1, 1977)[^1][^2] is a member of the [[Minnesota House of Representatives]] from the [[Republican Party of Minnesota]].[^1][^3] She represents District 12B, which takes in parts of Douglas, Stearns and Pope Counties in west-central [[Minnesota]]. She holds a child care provider license and formerly worked for AT&T.[^1] Franson was first elected in 2010. As of 2026 she had won eight consecutive House terms.[^4] Her enacted and vetoed bills show how the state's divided government handled her proposals. In 2017 she wrote a bill barring state-funded health care program money from paying for abortions; both chambers passed it and Governor [[Mark Dayton]] vetoed it. In 2018 the House and Senate passed her child care bill without dissent, and Dayton signed it.[^5] On September 27, 2024, she sued the [[Minnesota Attorney General]].[^5] ## Early life and education Franson is a graduate of AlBrook High School in Saginaw. She earned a bachelor's degree in psychology and humanities at the [[University of Minnesota]] Duluth. Her family's home is in Alexandria.[^6] ## Political career Franson won the seat in 2010. The incumbent, Mary Ellen Otremba, had not run again.[^4] The 2012 race was settled by recount. Returns on election night, November 6, 2012, put Franson ahead by a single vote. Under state law, that margin required an automatic recount. Thirty-two voters had been given ballots for the wrong contest, and three more voters could not be accounted for. A judge therefore ordered 35 ballots removed from the total at random. After the recount, Franson led by 12 votes. Her opponent, Bob Cunniff, conceded on November 29.[^4] By 2026 she had been returned to the House for eight terms in succession.[^4] Her committee assignments have included Health and Human Services Finance, Early Childhood Finance and Policy, Higher Education Finance & Policy, Health & Human Services Reform, and Aging & Long-Term Care Policy. She chaired the Subcommittee on Childcare Access & Affordability.[^4] A November 2024 post on the Bluestem Prairie blog listed her among the House committee division co-chairs announced for the 2025–26 Legislature.[^7] By March 2026 she was a co-chair of the House capital investment committee.[^5] The Minnesota Revisor of Statutes maintains a bill-status search of House bills she authored in the 2025 session.[^8] Her House member page carries press releases, including one on a House passage vote[^9] and one on a powerlifting case.[^10] ## Political positions ### Abortion In 2017 Franson wrote a measure that would have prohibited the use of money from state-funded health care programs to pay for abortions. Both chambers of the [[Legislature]] approved it, and Governor Mark Dayton vetoed it.[^5] ### Child care Franson previously worked as a child care provider, and she has authored several child care bills. She opposed an executive order from Governor Dayton that allowed child care providers to unionize.[^5] In May 2018, KMSP-TV reported child care fraud, and Franson urged the state to act. That same month, Dayton signed a Franson-authored bill that reduced regulations on child care providers. The bill had passed both legislative chambers unanimously.[^5] ### Environment On April 20, 2012, House Chaplain Francis Grady referred to Earth Day in the opening prayer on the House floor and connected it to the Gulf oil spill. Franson objected on Twitter. She wrote that the prayer "may as well been dedicated to 'Mother Earth', coincidence? I think not. 2nd offensive prayer in a month."[^5] In June 2018 she and three other Republican legislators obtained state money to help clean up two lakes in Alexandria.[^5] ### Climate change On March 24, 2026, the House capital investment committee, which Franson co-chairs, discussed future weather trends and infrastructure. During the discussion, Franson said: "My faith is not in climate change. It's not in scientists dictating what we should and should not do to save the environment. Because my faith is in Jesus Christ."[^5] Later in the same remarks she said: "And if you've read the good book, you know how it ends. It's not with climate change."[^5] ### Free speech On September 27, 2024, Franson filed a lawsuit against Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison.[^5] The sources cited here do not give the suit's court, docket, claims or current status. ## In the Minnesota record ### Who - Mary Danielle Franson, Republican member of the Minnesota House of Representatives, District 12B.[^1][^2] ### What - Licensed child care provider and former AT&T employee.[^1] - Chair of the Subcommittee on Childcare Access & Affordability.[^4] - Co-chair of the House capital investment committee as of March 24, 2026.[^5] ### When - March 1, 1977: born.[^1] - 2010: first elected to the House.[^4] - April 20, 2012: objected to the House opening prayer.[^5] - November 6, 2012: one-vote election-night margin, which triggered an automatic recount.[^4] - November 29, 2012: Bob Cunniff conceded.[^4] - 2017: her abortion-funding bill passed both chambers and was vetoed by Dayton.[^5] - May 2018: Dayton signed her child care regulation bill.[^5] - June 2018: she secured state funding for two Alexandria lakes with three other Republican legislators.[^5] - November 2024: named among the 2025–26 House committee division co-chairs, per a blog report.[^7] - September 27, 2024: sued Attorney General Keith Ellison.[^5] ### Where - District 12B covers portions of Douglas, Stearns and Pope Counties.[^1] - She lives in Alexandria.[^6] ### How - In the 2012 recount, a judge ordered 35 ballots pulled at random. This followed 32 wrong-race ballots and three unaccounted-for voters. After the recount, Franson led by 12 votes.[^4] ### How many - Eight consecutive House terms as of 2026.[^4] - 35 ballots removed in the 2012 recount; final lead of 12 votes.[^4] - Four Republican legislators secured the 2018 Alexandria lake funding.[^5] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia, *Mary Franson*, lead section (revision 1378161416, retrieved 2026-10-26) — full name, birth date, party, District 12B and its counties, occupations. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Franson [^2]: LegiStorm, *Mary Danielle Franson* — biographical profile under her full name. https://www.legistorm.com/person/bio/196082/Mary_Danielle_Franson.html [^3]: Ballotpedia, *Mary Franson* — candidate and officeholder profile. https://ballotpedia.org/Mary_Franson [^4]: Wikipedia, *Mary Franson*, "Political career" (revision 1378161416, retrieved 2026-10-26) — 2010 election, 2012 recount, terms won, committee service. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Franson [^5]: Wikipedia, *Mary Franson*, "Political positions" (revision 1378161416, retrieved 2026-10-26) — 2017 and 2018 bills and their outcomes, 2012 prayer objection, 2018 lake funding, 2026 committee remarks, September 27, 2024 lawsuit. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Franson [^6]: Wikipedia, *Mary Franson*, "Early life and education" (revision 1378161416, retrieved 2026-10-26) — schooling, degree, residence. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Franson [^7]: Bluestem Prairie (blog), *"Even Mary Franson got one": Minnesota House committee division co-chairs announced for 2025–26 Legislature* (November 2024) — report of her naming as a division co-chair. https://www.bluestemprairie.com/bluestemprairie/2024/11/even-mary-franson-got-one-minnesota-house-committee-division-co-chairs-announced-for-2025-26-legisla.html [^8]: Minnesota Revisor of Statutes, *Bill status search, House author: Franson* (94th Legislature, 2025 session) — record of House bills she authored. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/revisor/pages/search_status/status_result.php?body=House&session=0942025&author1[ [^9]: Minnesota House of Representatives, *Franson release on House passage* — member press release. https://www.house.mn.gov/members/profile/news/15347/28050 [^10]: Minnesota House of Representatives, *Franson release on powerlifting case* — member press release. https://www.house.mn.gov/members/profile/news/15347/51349