# Mary Kiffmeyer

Mary Kiffmeyer (born December 29, 1946) is an American politician. She served as Minnesota Secretary of State from 1999 to 2007 and went on to serve in the Minnesota legislature. A member of the Republican Party of Minnesota, she previously represented District 30, which included parts of Hennepin, Sherburne, and Wright counties.

## Early life

The oldest of 14 children, Kiffmeyer was raised in Pierz, Minnesota.

## Minnesota Secretary of State

Kiffmeyer was elected secretary of state in November 1998, and was sworn into office on January 4, 1999. She was re-elected in November 2002. She was defeated for re-election in November 2006 by Mark Ritchie.
During Kiffmeyer's tenure, Minnesota was the highest voter turnout state for all 8 years as determined by Curtis Ganz of the Center for Democracy. In 2004, Minnesota had 77.7% voter turnout, the highest in the state since 1960. She transformed the Secretary of State website allowing users to find and get directions to their local precincts, and see who their local candidates are in the upcoming election through the "My Ballot" feature..
During Kiffmeyer's tenure, she convinced the legislature to establish the Safe At Home Program for victims of domestic violence who wanted to register to vote and keep their address private.

## Minnesota Legislature

Kiffmeyer was elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives in 2008 and re-elected in 2010, representing District 16B. In 2012, she was elected to the Minnesota Senate, representing District 30. Kiffmeyer served as the President Pro Tem of the Minnesota Senate for two years.

## Electoral history

* Minnesota Senate 30th district election, 2020
** Mary Kiffmeyer (Republican), 34714 (67.3%)
** Diane Nguyen (DFL), 16861 (32.7%)
** Write-in, 45 (0.1%)
* Minnesota Senate 30th district election, 2016
** Mary Kiffmeyer (Republican), 30484 (71.7%)
** P.J. LaCroix (DFL), 11979 (28.2%)
** Write-in, 49 (0.1%)
* Minnesota Senate 30th district election, 2012
** Mary Kiffmeyer (Republican), 25205 (62.4%)
** Paul Perovich (DFL), 15125 (37.5%)
** Write-in, 58 (0.1%)
* Minnesota House of Representatives 16B district election, 2010
** Mary Kiffmeyer (Republican), 13,254 (70.4%)
** Tom Heyd (DFL), 5,563 (29.5%)
** Write-in, 18 (0.1%)
* Minnesota House of Representatives 16B district election, 2008
** Mary Kiffmeyer (Republican), 15,863 (63.5%)
** Steve Andrews (DFL), 8,996 (36.0%)
** Write-in, 114 (0.5%)
* Minnesota secretary of state election, 2006
** Mark Ritchie (DFL), 1,049,432 (49.1%)
** Mary Kiffmeyer (Republican), 943,989 (44.2%)
** Bruce Kennedy (For Independent Voters), 78,522 (3.7%)
** Joel Spoonheim (Independence), 64,489 (3.0%)
** Write-in, 1,211 (0.1%)
* Minnesota secretary of state election, 2002
** Mary Kiffmeyer (Republican), 1,040,739 (47.6%)
** Buck Humphrey (DFL), 974,045 (44.5%)
** Dean Alger (Independence), 104,799 (4.8%)
** Andrew Koebrick (Green), 67,404 (3.1%)
** Write-in, 1,253 (0.1%)
* Minnesota secretary of state election, 1998
** Mary Kiffmeyer (Republican), 928,576 (46.8%)
** Edwina Garcia (DFL), 818,236 (41.2%)
** Alan Shilepsky (Reform), 192,997 (9.7%)
** Kenneth Iverson (Libertarian), 44,663 (2.2%)
** Write-in, 1,742 (0.1%)

## Personal life

Kiffmeyer lives near Big Lake, Minnesota with her husband, Ralph Kiffmeyer, a nurse anesthetist who served one term in the Minnesota House of Representatives. They have four children and 14 grandchildren.