# Tina Liebling *Minnesota attorney and member of the Minnesota House of Representatives (DFL, District 24B)* Tina Liebling (born 1953) is an attorney and a member of the [[Minnesota House of Representatives]].[^1][^2] She belongs to the [[Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party]] (DFL). As of the Wikipedia revision retrieved in October 2026, she represents District 24B, a seat drawn almost wholly within the city of Rochester, in Olmsted County in the southeastern part of [[Minnesota]].[^2] Liebling first sought a House seat in 2002 and won one in 2004.[^2] She entered the 2018 race for [[Governor of Minnesota]] and left it in mid-March of that year.[^2] ## Early life and education Liebling grew up in [[Minneapolis]]. Her father was the photographer Jerome Liebling.[^2] Her family later left the area. She came back to study at the [[University of Minnesota]], where she took a B.A. in Spanish magna cum laude.[^2] She then earned a Master of Science in Public Health at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. She completed her law degree (J.D., cum laude) at Boston University School of Law.[^2] ## Political career In 2002 Liebling ran for the District 30A seat in a three-candidate contest. She placed second to [[Carla Nelson]], a former state representative.[^2] In a 2004 rematch she unseated Nelson, taking 50.75% of the vote. She took office on January 4, 2005.[^2] Her win was part of large DFL gains in the House that year, as was that of Andy Welti, a former DFL member from neighboring District 30B. The two became the first Democrats in many years to hold Rochester-area seats, which had long been held by Republicans.[^2] In 2006 Liebling again defeated Nelson, with 52.76% of the vote.[^2] In 2008 she took 61.81% against Jacob Dettinger, a Rochester businessman. In 2010 she took 55.15% against Charlie O'Connell, who received 44.73%.[^2] Her district was slightly redrawn after redistricting. In 2012 she defeated Breanna Bly, a Rochester School Board member, 58.8% to 41.0%. She beat Bly again in 2014, 55.2% to 44.7%.[^2] In 2016 she won 59.9% to 40.0% over first-time candidate Will Waggoner. Her 2018 result against Paul Wilson, a former Olmsted County Commissioner, was 63.2% to 36.6%, the highest share she had recorded.[^2] Liebling was an assistant majority leader in the 2007–08 session. She chose not to return to that post for the 2009–10 biennium.[^2] In 2011–12 she was the DFL lead on the Health and Human Services Reform Committee. She also sat on the Health and Human Services Finance Committee and the Judiciary Policy and Finance Committee.[^2] The DFL regained the House majority in the 2012 election. Liebling then chaired the Health and Human Services Policy Committee for the 2013–14 biennium.[^2] ## Candidate for Governor 2018 Governor [[Mark Dayton]] did not seek another term. Liebling declared her candidacy for governor on April 2, 2017.[^2] In the DFL's statewide gubernatorial preference poll of February 2018 she placed fifth, with roughly 6% of the vote. She withdrew in March 2018.[^2] ## Personal life Liebling married Dr. Mark Liebow soon after finishing law school. The couple settled in the Chicago area, where their three children were born.[^2] In 1994 the family relocated to Rochester after the Mayo Clinic hired Liebow as a consultant. There Liebling opened her own criminal-law practice.[^2] ## In the Minnesota record ### Who - Tina Liebling, member of the Minnesota House of Representatives, DFL.[^1][^2] ### What - Member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. Wikipedia lists her district as 24B.[^1][^2] ### When - First ran for the House in 2002 and was first elected in 2004.[^2] - Sworn in to the House on January 4, 2005.[^2] - Announced a candidacy for governor on April 2, 2017, and withdrew in March 2018.[^2] ### Where - District 24B, almost entirely the city of Rochester, Olmsted County.[^2] ## Notes [^1]: Minnesota House of Representatives, *Tina Liebling — MN House* (undated) — identifies Liebling as a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. https://www.house.mn.gov/members/profile/news/12268 [^2]: Wikipedia, *Tina Liebling* (revision 1379272406, retrieved 2026-10-26) — birth year, education, district, election results, committee posts, 2018 gubernatorial campaign and personal history. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tina_Liebling