Mike Hilborn
Elections and appointments
Personal
Contact
Mike Hilborn is running for election for Mayor of St. Paul in Minnesota. He is on the ballot in the general election on November 4, 2025.
Hilborn completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Mike Hilborn was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He earned a high school diploma from Burnsville High School and a bachelor's degree from Bethel University in 1985. His career experience includes working as a business owner and president. As of 2025, Hilborn was affiliated with AccessAbility.[1][2]
Elections
2025
See also: Mayoral election in St. Paul, Minnesota (2025)
General election
The general election will occur on November 4, 2025.
Endorsements
Ballotpedia is gathering information about candidate endorsements. To send us an endorsement, click here.
2024
See also: Minnesota House of Representatives elections, 2024
General election
Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Maria Isa Pérez-Vega advanced from the Democratic primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 65B.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Mike Hilborn advanced from the Republican primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 65B.
Campaign finance
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Hilborn in this election.
2025
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Mike Hilborn completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Hilborn's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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I was born in Minneapolis in 1963 and raised in the Twin Cities by my parents, Lloyd and Sally Hilborn. Lloyd retired as a UAW worker on the assembly line at the Saint Paul Ford plant, and Sally worked at Control Data soldering circuit boards. My parents instilled in me a deep work ethic and taught me to work hard, play fair, do the right thing, and expect the best in life—values I now pass on to my own family.
I graduated from Bethel University in 1985. To pay for college, I worked nights at UPS and was promoted to full-time management in 1985. I raised my three sons in a house in Saint Paul. Today, they are 36, 34, and 32.
In 1995, I started a small business out of my garage in Saint Paul that grew so that I had to leave UPS in 2000. My company has been in Saint Paul for 30 years and has grown to 45 employees. We power wash in the spring, summer, and fall, and plow snow during the winter. As a second-chance employer, we hire men and women who have been incarcerated or are in recovery. Our employees start at $25 an hour, with health and dental insurance, 401K, and paid time off (PTO). My business and my home are in Saint Paul.
I serve on the Board of Directors for AccessAbility, Inc., which helps people with disabilities and other challenges find meaningful employment. I regularly speak to men and women at Minnesota Adult and Teen Challenge, which assists individuals in overcoming chemical addictions and other life-controlling problems. Downtown Saint Paul
Saint Paul is our Minnesota capitol. Our downtown should be a clear reflection of our beautiful state. We are going to make downtown Saint Paul a beautiful and safe destination for businesses, families and visitors.
Live…work…play! From our beloved Minnesota Wild and St. Paul Saints, to multiple museums, numerous performing arts theaters and a teeming restaurant scene, downtown Saint Paul is the heartbeat of our state! My administration will immediately implement policies to restore Saint Paul to the thriving city we know it to be. We aim to bolster our tourism industry and attract new residents and businesses by reminding everyone of Saint Paul’s unrivaled vibrancy! My dad was a very hard worker. He worked at the Saint Paul Ford Assembly Plant during the day and worked part time evenings at the Met Stadium for Twins and Vikings games and the Met Center for North Star games. On evenings when he wasn't working, my dad would take me door to door to sell candy, wreaths, and fertilizer for Cub Scouts and Boys Scouts, and newspaper subscriptions for the Star Tribune. He made sure I won every selling contest I was involved with. It taught me a lot about perseverance. You never quit.
Founding Fathers by Captivating History is a good book to read to understand how our country and constitutional republic was formed and by who.
1. Integrity: honesty, trustworthiness, and ethical behavior in all aspects of life. Personally, professionally, and politically.
2. Transparency: open and honest in decision making processes. Public needs to see how and why decisions are made.
3. Accountability: must take responsibility for their actions and decisions.
4. Leadership: effectively guide their staff and their constituents. Be able to make difficult decisions.
5. Listening and communication: listen to their constituents and effectively communicate with a wide range of people.
6. Empathy: understand the needs and concerns of a diverse population.
7. Commitment to public service: prioritize the best interest of the public over personal gain. I live with integrity and honesty. My company has four core values:
Show Up
Get Things Done
Do the Right Thing
Grow or Die
These four core values are why my business has been so successful. My company and I live these core values every day. 1. Representing constituents: the interests, needs, and concerns of the individuals they serve.
2. Making policy decisions: develop policies, laws and regulations that promote freedom and liberty.
3. Budgeting and financial oversight: allocate resources and provide oversight to ensure public funds are used responsibly.
4. Collaborating with other officials: work with government officials, citizens, and organizations to address community needs.
5. Ensuring transparency and accountability: ensure that government actions are transparent, accountable and responsive to the public.
6. Promoting public welfare: promote the welfare, safety, and prosperity of their communities by addressing social issues and promoting economic development. My company is a second chance employer. Some of the men and women we hire have either been incarcerated or are in recovery. We don't throw people away. I have been blessed to have met and worked with some of the most amazing people. I want my legacy to be that I gave people a chance to be a part of something great.
I would also like my sons to believe I was a great dad.
I vaguely remember the moon landing. I was 6.
My brother and I had a paper route with the Minneapolis Tribune starting in elementary school. Up by 5:00 AM so the papers were delivered 6:00 AM. My dad made sure that we had our paper route for 5 years. Part of having a paper route was selling newspaper subscriptions. I sold enough newspaper subscriptions to earn trips to Florida, Texas, California, Hawaii and the US Virgin Islands. I sold a lot of newspaper subscriptions.
Traction by Gino Wickman. It is the greatest business book I've ever read. I recommend this book to everyone, every opportunity I get. If you follow its instructions, you will have a truly great company. I only wish I had read it years ago.
Captain America. Champion of Freedom and Free Speech.
As Mayor of Saint Paul my role is to be a leader who takes action to address pressing community issues with a common-sense approach. Prioritizing the needs of families, fostering safer streets, reducing taxes, and promoting accountability in city government. Restoring opportunity and supporting businesses to create a thriving economy, drawing from my experience as a business owner and second-chance employer. I see leadership as stepping up to tackle challenges like rising crime, high taxes, and business closures, not for personal gain but to make a tangible difference for the city’s residents. My vision is rooted in practical solutions and collaboration, particularly with businesses, to ensure Saint Paul moves in a direction that benefits all its citizens
In Saint Paul the mayor is not a member of the city council but serves as the city's chief executive, while the city council acts as the legislative body. The mayor is elected citywide, separately from the council, and has significant executive powers, including veto authority over council decisions and responsibility for appointing key administrative officials, such as the city attorney, with council approval. The city operates under a "strong mayor" system, where the mayor oversees day-to-day administration, not a city manager.
The ideal relationship between the mayor and the city council should be one of collaboration, mutual respect, and clear delineation of roles. The mayor, as the executive, should set a strategic vision for Saint Paul, propose budgets, and execute policies while keeping the council informed and engaged. The city council, as the legislative body, should focus on passing ordinances, approving budgets, and representing the diverse interests of Saint Paul’s residents. Regular communication—through meetings, briefings, or joint planning sessions—helps align priorities and avoid conflicts.
The mayor should respect the council’s legislative authority, ensuring their input shapes major decisions, while the council should avoid micromanaging executive functions, trusting the mayor to implement policies effectively. When disagreements arise, such as over budget priorities or vetoes, both sides should prioritize transparent dialogue and compromise to serve the city’s best interests. For example, addressing shared goals like public safety or economic development requires the mayor to propose actionable plans and the council to provide legislative support, ensuring checks and balances without gridlock. I've lived in Saint Paul since 1983. For 42 years Saint Paul has been my home. I love the Mississippi River. I love the bike trails. I love Mears Park, Rice Park, Kellogg Park, Como Park, Mounds Park, Crosby Farm Park, Harriet Island and especially Irvine Park. I love the many restaurants of Saint Paul. Holman's Table, McGovern's, Downtowner Woodfire Grill, Cossettas, and Saint Paul Grill are among my favorites. I wish Saint Dinette was still in business. I love how close Saint Paul is to the international airport. I love walking to a Saints baseball game. I live just down the hill from the Minnesota Wild. I love that Saint Paul is our state capitol. That the Saint Paul Cathedral is just up the hill. I love it that we have so many colleges. College of Saint Catherine, Saint Thomas, Hamline, Concordia, Macalester, Saint Paul College, Metropolitan State University, Saint Scholastica, Mitchell Hamline College of Law. And, the University of Minnesota. That we have so many great hospitals. Of course, I love our Saint Paul neighborhoods and my neighbors.
All the people of this amazing city. I love Saint Paul. One Saint Paul. I don't want to live anywhere else.
One of the greatest challenges for our city over the next decade is to reign in spending and to show restraint on taxing our citizens and the businesses who employ them. As inflation continues to burden families and individuals, we owe it to the citizens we serve to consider tax dollars finite resources to be invested only in those things that serve most the needs of our citizens across the city. I am committed to ensuring that spending and the taxes required to support our city’s budget carefully consider the overall needs of the working class.
In Saint Paul the mayor serves as the chief executive with oversight of the police department, the ideal relationship between the mayor’s office and the police should be collaborative, transparent, and focused on aligning public safety goals with community needs. The mayor, as the city’s leader, sets the strategic vision for policing, appoints the police chief (with city council approval), and ensures the department’s policies reflect the city’s values. The police, in turn, provide professional expertise, operational insights, and data-driven recommendations to inform the mayor’s decisions.
Key elements of this relationship include:
Clear Communication: Regular briefings between the mayor’s office and police leadership ensure the mayor is informed about crime trends, resource needs, and community concerns.
Shared Priorities: The mayor should work with the police to set goals like reducing violent crime or improving community trust, while respecting the department’s operational autonomy.
Accountability and Oversight: The mayor must hold the police accountable for misconduct or inefficiencies, supporting reforms when needed, such as enhanced training or body camera policies. The police should provide transparent reporting to the mayor’s office to maintain public trust.
Community Bridge: The mayor acts as a liaison between the police and residents, ensuring community input shapes policing strategies. Town halls or public safety forums can facilitate this dialogue.
This relationship avoids micromanagement by the mayor’s office while ensuring the police operate under civilian oversight. It balances the mayor’s executive authority with the police’s professional expertise, fostering a partnership that enhances safety and responsiveness in Saint Paul. Free markets provide better goods and services at higher quality and at less cost than the government. Government should never do what free markets can do. What the government does do should be an open book. And oversight and criticism should be encouraged.
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.
2024
Mike Hilborn completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Hilborn's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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Growing up my dad worked at the Ford Assembly Plant in Saint Paul. In 1986 I bought my first house in Saint Paul. I raised my three sons in Saint Paul. I started my business out of my house in Saint Paul in 1995. Due to my business growing, my business has had 3 locations, all of them being in Saint Paul and in Saint Paul today. We are a second chance employer. Some of the men and women we are hire have been incarcerated or are in recovery. As of 2024, my employees start at $25 per hour and also includes health and dental insurance, 401K and paid time off. I'm on the Board of Directors for AccessAbility, an organization that people with disabilities and other issues find employment.
- Affordability. We must be able to afford housing, groceries, and gas. Living and raising kids must be affordable.
- Law and Order. Crime hurts everyone. Especially the poor. We have to hold our criminals accountable and support our police.
- Education. Schools must be academically challenging and safe. Focus should be on reading, writing, and arithmetic. Not indoctrination.
Homelessness. We need to care for our homeless suffering from severe mental illness. I don't understand how we can let our citizens suffering from severe mental illness live outside.
My dad was a very hard worker. He worked at the Saint Paul Ford Assembly Plant during the day and worked part time evenings at the Met Stadium for Twins and Vikings games and the Met Center for North Star games. On evenings when he wasn't working, my dad would take me door to door to sell candy, wreaths, and fertilizer for Cub Scouts and Boys Scouts, and newspaper subscriptions for the Star Tribune. He made sure I won any selling contest I was involved with. It taught me a lot about perseverance. You never quit.
Founding Fathers by Captivating History is a good book to read to understand how our country and constitutional republic was formed and by who.
1. Integrity: honesty, trustworthiness, and ethical behavior in all aspects of life. Personally, professionally, and politically.
2. Transparency: open and honest in decision making processes. Public needs to see how and why decisions are made.
3. Accountability: must take responsibility for their actions and decisions.
4. Leadership: effectively guide their staff and their constituents. Be able to make difficult decisions.
5. Listening and communication: listen to their constituents and effectively communicate with a wide range of people.
6. Empathy: understand the needs and concerns of a diverse population.
7. Commitment to public service: prioritize the best interest of the public over personal gain. I live with integrity and honesty. My company has four core values:
Show Up
Get Things Done
Do the Right Thing
Grow or Die
These four core values are why my business has been so successful. My company and I live these core values every day. 1. Representing constituents: the interests, needs, and concerns of the individuals they serve.
2. Making policy decisions: develop policies, laws and regulations that promote freedom and liberty.
3. Budgeting and financial oversight: allocate resources and provide oversight to ensure public funds are used responsibly.
4. Collaborating with other officials: work with government officials, citizens, and organizations to address community needs.
5. Ensuring transparency and accountability: ensure that government actions are transparent, accountable and responsive to the public.
6. Promoting public welfare: promote the welfare, safety, and prosperity of their communities by addressing social issues and promoting economic development. My company is a second chance employer. Some of the men and women we hire have either been incarcerated or are in recovery. We don't throw people away. I have been blessed to have met and worked with some of the most amazing people. I want my legacy to be that I gave people a chance to be a part of something great.
I vaguely remember the moon landing. I was 6.
My brother and I had a paper route with the Minneapolis Tribune starting in elementary school. Up by 5:00 AM so the papers were delivered 6:00 AM. My dad made sure that we had our paper route for 5 years. Part of having a paper route was selling newspaper subscriptions. I sold enough newspaper subscriptions to earn trips to Florida, Texas, California, Hawaii and the US Virgin Islands. I sold a lot of newspaper subscriptions.
Traction by Gino Wickman. It is the greatest business book I've ever read. I recommend this book to everyone, every opportunity I get. If you follow its instructions, you will have a truly great company. I only wish I had read it years ago.
Captain America. Champion of Freedom and Free Speech.
The ideal relationship between the governor and the state legislature should be characterized by cooperation, compromise, transparency and a shared commitment to serving the best interests of the state and its citizens. To effectively govern, it is essential for the governor and the legislature to respect the roles and powers granted to each branch of the government. Just as with decisions for my business or decisions made within households across the state, decisions must thoughtfully consider those individuals who a decision may impact, regardless of whether you have the power to enact a decision.
One of the greatest challenges for our state over the next decade is to reign in spending and to show restraint on taxing our citizens and the businesses who employ them. As inflation continues to burden families and individuals, we owe it to the citizens we serve to consider tax dollars finite resources to be invested only in those things that serve most the needs of our citizens across the state. I am committed to ensuring that spending and the taxes required to support our state’s budget carefully consider the overall needs of the working class.
I believe it’s important to have both experienced policy-makers as well as regular, working citizens serving within our legislature to ensure that policies are effective and relevant to society. As a business owner employing dozens of people within my district, I have daily, first-hand knowledge of the challenges that face businesses and employees, while valuing those experienced legislators who can help draft and pass legislation that may best address those challenges and improve the lives of families and individuals in our state.
It is critical to build relationships with other legislators both within our parties and most critically across the aisle. Without relationships, communication and collaboration is challenging. Just as I do in business every day, I plan to bring people together to get the work done that voters expect of us.
We have had some amazingly effective legislators in our state, some who served for several years, and some who may have served only briefly. While no one legislator comes to mind who I would want to model or emulate, I hope to be a representative who listens to the voters I serve, collaborates with the legislators I serve with and leads for the generations that will follow. As a businessman and taxpayer in this state, I count it a privilege to invest my efforts and resources in Minnesota, and I hope that I may be a model to others who may have the same opportunity to start and run a business in our state.
It is a privilege to be able to serve the citizens of Minnesota in whatever way may be most helpful to ensure a healthy and prosperous future for each individual and family in our state. At this time, I am compelled to provide the voters in District 65B with a choice to vote for someone like them, someone who lives and works in the district and is committed to welfare of those living here and in Minnesota. If my service may be needed to serve Minnesotans in other ways, I’ll carefully consider that call just as I have considered this one to run for the House of Representatives for District 65B.
Groceries are too expensive. Gas is too expensive. Rent and housing is too expensive. Raising kids is getting too expensive. We have to lower taxes on the middle class and on businesses. The higher taxes are and the more regulations there are, makes everyone poorer. Very few people are going to start a business in Saint Paul. It's just too expensive.
The constitution is what dictates what government is allowed to do. Emergency powers are not above the constitution.
Eliminate front license plates. It's expensive, wasteful, and not necessary.
I'm the endorsed Republican candidate for District 65B.
Economic Development Finance and Policy Committee. Labor and Industry Finance and Policy Committee. Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee. Workforce Development Finance Committee. Ways and Means Committee.
Free markets provide better goods and services at higher quality and at less cost than the government. Government should never do what free markets and NGOs can do. What the government does do should be an open book. And oversight and criticism should be encouraged.
Bad. Legislators are elected to make decisions. Ballot initiatives are not necessary if the senate and the house are doing their job.
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
External links
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on July 16, 2024
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on June 11, 2025
