Cheryl Youakim

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Cheryl Youakim
Democratic Party
Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B
Tenure
2015 - Present
Term ends
2027
Years in position
10
Prior offices:
Hopkins City Council
Compensation
Base salary
$51,750/year
Per diem
$66/day
Elections and appointments
Last election
November 5, 2024
Education
Bachelor's
University of Minnesota
Contact
Official website
Official Facebook
Campaign website
Campaign Facebook
Campaign X
Personal Facebook
Personal LinkedIn

Cheryl Youakim (Democratic Party) is a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives, representing District 46B. She assumed office on January 6, 2015. Her current term ends on January 12, 2027.

Youakim (Democratic Party) ran for re-election to the Minnesota House of Representatives to represent District 46B. She won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Committee assignments

2025-2026

Youakim was assigned to the following committees:

2023-2024

Youakim was assigned to the following committees:

2021-2022

Youakim was assigned to the following committees:

2019-2020

Youakim was assigned to the following committees:

2017 legislative session

At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:

Minnesota committee assignments, 2017
• Government Operations and Elections
• Transportation and Regional Governance

2015 legislative session

At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Youakim served on the following committees:

The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.


Elections

2024

See also: Minnesota House of Representatives elections, 2024

General election

General election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B

Incumbent Cheryl Youakim defeated Kim Rich in the general election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B on November 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Cheryl Youakim
Cheryl Youakim (D)
 
67.6
 
16,510
Image of Kim Rich
Kim Rich (R)
 
32.2
 
7,863
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.2
 
42

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 24,415
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

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Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Cheryl Youakim advanced from the Democratic primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B.

Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Kim Rich advanced from the Republican primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B.

Campaign finance

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Youakim in this election.

2022

See also: Minnesota House of Representatives elections, 2022

General election

General election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B

Incumbent Cheryl Youakim won election in the general election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Cheryl Youakim
Cheryl Youakim (D)
 
97.1
 
14,738
 Other/Write-in votes
 
2.9
 
437

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 15,175
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Cheryl Youakim advanced from the Democratic primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B.

2020

See also: Minnesota House of Representatives elections, 2020

General election

General election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B

Incumbent Cheryl Youakim defeated Melissa Moore in the general election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Cheryl Youakim
Cheryl Youakim (D)
 
73.7
 
18,731
Image of Melissa Moore
Melissa Moore (R)
 
26.2
 
6,670
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1
 
27

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 25,428
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Cheryl Youakim advanced from the Democratic primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B.

Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Melissa Moore advanced from the Republican primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B.

Campaign finance

2018

See also: Minnesota House of Representatives elections, 2018

General election

General election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B

Incumbent Cheryl Youakim defeated Melissa Moore in the general election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Cheryl Youakim
Cheryl Youakim (D)
 
75.5
 
16,400
Image of Melissa Moore
Melissa Moore (R)
 
24.4
 
5,297
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1
 
31

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 21,728
(100.00% precincts reporting)
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B

Incumbent Cheryl Youakim advanced from the Democratic primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B on August 14, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Cheryl Youakim
Cheryl Youakim
 
100.0
 
5,458

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 5,458
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B

Melissa Moore defeated Bob Helland in the Republican primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B on August 14, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Melissa Moore
Melissa Moore
 
60.0
 
633
Image of Bob Helland
Bob Helland
 
40.0
 
422

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 1,055
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2016

See also: Minnesota House of Representatives elections, 2016

Elections for the Minnesota House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election took place on August 9, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was May 31, 2016.

Incumbent Cheryl Youakim defeated Bryan Bjornson in the Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B general election.[1][2]

Minnesota House of Representatives, District 46B General Election, 2016
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Cheryl Youakim Incumbent 68.92% 14,988
     Republican Bryan Bjornson 31.08% 6,760
Total Votes 21,748
Source: Minnesota Secretary of State


Incumbent Cheryl Youakim ran unopposed in the Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B Democratic primary.[3][4]

Minnesota House of Representatives, District 46B Democratic Primary, 2016
Party Candidate
    Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Cheryl Youakim Incumbent (unopposed)


Bryan Bjornson ran unopposed in the Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B Republican primary.[3][4]

Minnesota House of Representatives, District 46B Republican Primary, 2016
Party Candidate
    Republican Green check mark transparent.png Bryan Bjornson  (unopposed)

2014

See also: Minnesota House of Representatives elections, 2014

Elections for the Minnesota House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election was held on August 12, 2014, and a general election took place on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was June 3, 2014. Cheryl Youakim was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Bryan Bjornson was unopposed in the Republican primary. Youakim defeated Bjornson in the general election.[5][6][7]

Minnesota House of Representatives, District 46B General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngCheryl Youakim 68.5% 9,525
     Republican Bryan Bjornson 31.3% 4,353
     Write-in Write-in 0.2% 28
Total Votes 13,906

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Cheryl Youakim did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2022

Cheryl Youakim did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

Cheryl Youakim did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

2014

Youakim's website highlighted the following campaign themes:

“ Education

I started my political involvement by advocating for increased funding for Early Childhood. I co-founded a small nonprofit in 2004, Start Learning Early, to raise awareness in the West Metro around quality early childhood education. I was also an active member of the Hopkins Legislative Action Coalition which advocates for increased E-12 funding.

  • While there has been increased investment in quality early childhood programs, we still have much to do. Research continues to show that investing early in a child’s education, before they reach kindergarten, is the most cost-effective way to narrow the achievement/opportunity gap. Childhood does not have a rewind, kids only get one shot at being ready for kindergarten. I will continue to be an advocate for our youngest learners.
  • This year the Legislature made a bold move to bring stability to the way we fund our K-12 school system. We need to continue that investment because the quality of a child’s education should NOT be determined by their zip code. I will work to improve coordination between our high schools and our technical colleges, as well as Minnesota’s colleges and universities, so that students have a seamless entry into the higher education system of their choice.
  • When our kids receive their high school diploma, they should not only be prepared to move on to a higher education, but that next level has to be accessible and affordable. We are consigning the next generation to either a minimum-wage job or college debt - these should not be their only two choices.

Transportation

My time on the Southwest Light Rail Corridor Management Committee has shown me how important a balanced multi-modal approach is to handle the population growth we will face in the next few decades. Our congested roads are taking time out of people’s lives and money out of our businesses’ pockets. I will continue to advocate for investment in our roads, bridges and transit.

  • With 1 million more people expected in Minnesota by 2040, we cannot pave our way out of congestion. We need to balance our investment between roads, bridges and transit opportunities.
  • The southwestern suburbs will see the largest job growth in the metro region over the next decade. There will be 60,000 new jobs by 2020 in the western suburbs that people will need to be able to commute to. That is why he Southwest Light Rail *Transit line is so important to both the businesses and residents in our region.

As cars become more fuel efficient, we will need to find an additional, more stable, funding stream to maintain our roads and bridges. We can not let our infrastructure crumble and expect our businesses to be successful.

Economy

The time I have spent on the Hopkins City Council has shown me how important it is to look at more than just the numbers when balancing a budget, you need to focus on the people the budget is affecting. It has always been important to me to have a vision of what you want to accomplish with your investment and then figure out how you will get there. A city or state can not be sustainable on a budget plan of “this is the amount I want to spend, what can I get for it”. There is some truth to the old adage “you get what you pay for”. I will continue to focus on finding a cost-effective way to provide the services that people need and have come to expect while maintaining our vibrant community.

  • In Hopkins, we know that our small businesses are the backbone of our Mainstreet, and we have made sure that we are doing what we can to help make them successful.
  • While the increase in Local Government Aid helped cities keep their levies low, there is more that the State can do to partner with our local governments to streamline resources and make investments that will spur economic growth.
  • We need to find ways to help small businesses grow, whether it be tax credits for expanding or remodeling or streamlining the business filing process. Every little bit could mean the difference between their end of the year being in the red or the black.

Quality of Life

Minnesota has long been a leader in providing an amazing place to live, work and raise a family. As a city council member and a community advocate, I have been honored to be a part of enhancing and strengthening the community I love. I will continue to fight for the values that have been the foundation for our quality of life here in Minnesota so that the next generation has an even brighter future.

  • It will take careful planning to continue to grow our economy to meet demands, while protecting our environment and natural resources.
  • Our human capital has long been one of Minnesota’s most valuable resources. We need to continue our investment in education, job training, housing and healthcare to make sure that everyone is meeting their full potential.

Minimum wage must not only be increased, but we need to make a 40-hour work week mean something again. A hard week’s work should enable someone to put a roof over their head and food on the table.

  • I believe that once the errors with the MNSure roll out are corrected, it will be successful in providing affordable, quality care to our citizens. But, we need to make sure that corrections are made in a timely matter. Not only do we have to ensure that our healthcare affordable we need a quality workforce to provide it. To do that, we must ensure that the employees who are providing care, especially to our elderly and disabled, are being properly compensated. I support the 5% Campaign.[8][9]
 ”

Campaign finance summary

Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

Cheryl Youakim campaign contribution history
YearOfficeStatusContributionsExpenditures
2024* Minnesota House of Representatives District 46BWon general$50,443 $49,370
2022Minnesota House of Representatives District 46BWon general$32,705 $39,934
2020Minnesota House of Representatives District 46BWon general$40,281 N/A**
2018Minnesota House of Representatives District 46BWon general$33,474 N/A**
2016Minnesota House of Representatives, District 46bWon $38,595 N/A**
2014Minnesota House of Representatives, District 46bWon $21,173 N/A**
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

Scorecards

See also: State legislative scorecards and State legislative scorecards in Minnesota

A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.

Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.

Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states.  To contribute to the list of Minnesota scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.


2024


2023


2022


2021


2020


2019


2018


2017


2016


2015



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External links

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Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B
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    Footnotes

    1. ↑ Minnesota Secretary of State, "Candidate Filing Search," accessed August 25, 2016
    2. ↑ Minnesota Secretary of State, "General election results, 2016," accessed December 19, 2016
    3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Minnesota Secretary of State, "Candidate Filings," accessed June 3, 2016
    4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Minnesota Secretary of State, "Minnesota State Primary: Tuesday, August 9, 2016," accessed August 9, 2016
    5. ↑ Minnesota Secretary of State, "State Canvassing Board Report," August 19, 2014
    6. ↑ Minnesota Secretary of State, "2014 State General Election Candidate Filings," accessed July 25, 2014
    7. ↑ Minnesota Secretary of State, "2014 Election Results," accessed November 4, 2014
    8. ↑ Youakim for State Representative, "Priorities," accessed October 22, 2014
    9. ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.

    Political offices
    Preceded by
    -     		Minnesota House of Representatives District 46B
    2015-Present    		 Succeeded by
    -
    Preceded by
    -     		Hopkins City Council
    		Succeeded by
    -


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