The November ballot is set for House District 38A, which represents Osseo and parts of Brooklyn Park in the Minnesota Legislature.
DFL voters favored incumbent Huldah Momanyi-Hiltsley in the August primary election, choosing the one-term Minnesota House member over two DFL challengers. Republicans pushed Charlie Kistler forward to the general election ticket over Yelena Kurdyumova.
Momanyi-Hiltsley and Kistler will face off in the Nov. 3 general election. The candidate who wins this fall will serve a two-year term beginning in January 2027.
For more information on voting, visit hennepincounty.gov/services/elections.
Sun newspapers reached out to candidates to compile this voter’s guide in advance of the Nov. 3 election. Responses from both House District 38A candidates are below.
Huldah Momanyi-Hiltsley
(Submitted photo)
Huldah Momanyi-Hiltsley
Current occupation:
Representative
Education and experience:
MBA in global business management; bachelor’s degrees in international relations, international business, and reconciliation studies. Minnesota legislator with healthcare, MedTech, and executive leadership experience.
What is one issue you believe should be a higher priority in the Minnesota Legislature, and if elected, what would you do to help enact legislation related to that issue?
Housing affordability should be a higher priority. Families in Brooklyn Park, Osseo and Minnesota deserve stable homes without sacrificing groceries, healthcare, or other essentials. I have championed funding for homelessness prevention and emergency rental assistance. If reelected, I will continue to build bipartisan support to strengthen these programs, expand affordable housing, and improve tenant protections. I will work with residents, local governments, housing providers, and community organizations to craft practical legislation that prevents displacement and increases housing options. Keeping families housed strengthens our schools, local economy, and entire community.
Costs are rising across a wide range of essential goods, from groceries and gasoline to housing and home energy. What are your ideas for addressing what some describe as an “affordability crisis” at the state level? Are there any specific goods you would prioritize?
I would prioritize housing, groceries, and home energy because these essentials consume so much of a family’s budget. Minnesota can expand affordable housing, strengthen emergency rental assistance, and invest in energy efficiency programs that lower utility bills. I support protecting food assistance, funding food shelves, and ensuring eligible families receive tax credits and property tax relief. Affordable childcare and reliable transit also help families stretch their paychecks. I would pair these efforts with strong consumer protections and support for fair wages, working across the aisle to deliver practical relief for families, seniors, and working people.
The use of Flock cameras and other surveillance tools has become a hot-button issue for many local governments. What policies, if any, do you believe should be enacted at the state level regarding these technologies? More broadly, how do you view the relationship between public safety and individual privacy?
Public safety and individual privacy must go hand in hand. I support statewide safeguards for Flock cameras and other surveillance tools: clear limits on data collection, short retention periods, strict access controls, independent audits, and public transparency. These technologies should serve specific public safety purposes, with protections against discriminatory targeting, tracking lawful protests, or sharing data for civil immigration enforcement. Communities deserve a voice before deployment, and misuse must carry consequences. My background in data privacy informs my approach: give law enforcement tools to solve crimes while protecting civil rights and holding government accountable.
What is the best way for voters to contact you?
Charlie Kistler
(Submitted photo)
Charlie Kistler
Current occupation:
Retired but ready to go to work for Minnesota.
Education and experience:
Graduated from Armstrong High School, attended Moorhead State then went on to graduate from Dunwoody Institute.
What is one issue you believe should be a higher priority in the Minnesota Legislature, and if elected, what would you do to help enact legislation related to that issue?
There is no quick fix to better Minnesota residents. The best long term benefit to our great state is to work hard to bring common sense education back to our schools. Our math and reading scores are below 50%. For our children’s future we need to get our education back to the basics.
Costs are rising across a wide range of essential goods, from groceries and gasoline to housing and home energy. What are your ideas for addressing what some describe as an “affordability crisis” at the state level? Are there any specific goods you would prioritize?
Our costs of goods and services keep going up. There are many reasons but one of the less obvious ones are the small business taxes and property taxes which are anywhere from #1 to #4 in the country, depending on who’s calculating. These are costs we can control at the state level. When the business has these higher taxes, they have no choice but to pass them on to the consumer with higher goods and services costs. Our insurance costs keep going up, increased competition with properly reduced regulations would lower those costs.
The use of Flock cameras and other surveillance tools has become a hot-button issue for many local governments. What policies, if any, do you believe should be enacted at the state level regarding these technologies? More broadly, how do you view the relationship between public safety and individual privacy?
I know that these cameras have saved lives. We are also a nation with constitutional rights. My thought, which I’m open to modifying, is that we keep the cameras but require a warrant or something similar for access to that information. Looking for a lost child or elderly person, time is of the essence so it needs to be quick and simple. Misuse needs to have severe consequences no matter who the person is.
What is the best way for voters to contact you?