Your feedback ensures we stay focused on the facts that matter to you most—take our survey.
Janelle Calhoun
Janelle Calhoun (Democratic Party) ran for election to the Minnesota House of Representatives to represent District 36A. She lost in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Calhoun completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Janelle Calhoun was born in Minnesota. She earned a bachelor's degree from the Saint Olaf College. Her career experience includes working as an executive director.[1]
Elections
2024
See also: Minnesota House of Representatives elections, 2024
General election
General election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 36A
Incumbent Elliott Engen defeated Janelle Calhoun in the general election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 36A on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Elliott Engen (R) | 54.1 | 14,998 |
 | Janelle Calhoun (D)  | 45.8 | 12,714 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 29 | ||
| Total votes: 27,741 | |||
| = 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. Janelle Calhoun advanced from the Democratic primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 36A.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Incumbent Elliott Engen advanced from the Republican primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 36A.
Campaign finance
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Calhoun in this election.
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Janelle Calhoun completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Calhoun's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
| Collapse all
My professional career has taken me through multiple industries, but always with the common thread of serving others. I trained flight attendants to ensure safe and comfortable flights for travelers. Then I followed my parents’ footsteps into the healthcare industry, working for a pharmaceuticals company specializing in mental health and neurology drugs to improve the lives of patients. Later, as a licensed investment advisor at Thrivent Financial, I taught financial literacy, earning the Sweet Success Award for outstanding service by the YWCA.
But I found my true passion through grief.
Twenty-five years ago, one of my best friends was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer and started a foundation to raise awareness and fund research into it. I later became the executive director of the foundation, growing its size and impact every year, even through the pandemic.
My husband and I (and our two dogs) have called Lino Lakes home for the past seven years. We enjoy outdoor activities, including rock climbing, and chose Lino Lakes for its abundant natural beauty.- A robust public education system for all kids. I support a strong public education system with stable funding and equal educational opportunities for all students and will ensure education policies that address the needs of the whole child and family. The legislature has taken critical steps to tie the education funding formula to inflation, provide universal school meals that save the average family $1800 per year, and increase the number of school nurses and counselors – but work remains to be done to ensure adequate funding for all our schools across all Minnesota communities.
- Affordable, quality, and accessible healthcare. Through my work, I’ve met people at all stages of their cancer journey. This has made me passionate about affordable, accessible medicine and healthcare options. I support community-based comprehensive and affordable health care for all. Too many people face barriers when accessing essential healthcare services. If elected, I intend to hold insurance companies & pharmacy benefit managers accountable to ensure people receive the care they need to live happy and healthy lives. I will protect a woman’s right to choose and their access to contraception. We have the right to govern our own bodies, and receive quality health care services we choose.
- A clean, healthy and vibrant environment. I love our parks and trails and will always protect our environment. Stewarding clean water and other natural resources is a top priority for me. In the last two years, the legislature took steps to protect and clean up our water by investing in lead pipe remediation efforts statewide, and banning “forever chemicals” (PFAS) in consumer products, and I look forward to building upon these efforts once elected.
Specifically prescription drug access and affordability, health insurance plans, health maintenance organizations, pharmacy benefit managers, professional licensing standards, and healthcare sector merger, acquisition and monopoly oversight.
Environmental regulation policy, finance and oversight.
Specifically leveraging Federal dollars to fund innovation, and deployment of new green energy technologies that not only benefit the environment, but save money. Industry and individual pollution control and mitigation and restoration of polluted lands/waters.
Education policy, finance and oversight.
Today, women are some of our greatest leaders, and we aren't going back.
North Central State Regional Council of Carpenters (NCSRCC),
Friends of the Boundary Waters Action Network,
Boundary Waters Action Fund,
Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA),
Service Employees International Union (SEIU),
Pro-Choice Minnesota,
Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota Action Fund,
Education Minnesota,
Conservation Minnesota Voter Center, Minnesota Association of Professional Employees (MAPE),
American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees Council 5 (AFSCME),
Climate Cabinet,
Northeast Metro Climate Action,
Women Winning,
EMILY's List,
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
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.
See also
2024 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on September 1, 2024
