Aiming to be next Hennepin County Attorney

Hennepin County voters will select a new county attorney in November 2026, and five of the six candidates made their cases recently for why they should be the one to replace Mary Moriarty.

Moriarty is not seeking another term.

The Minneapolis DFL seniors caucus held a candidate forum on March 31, 2026 at Sabathani Community Center.

“The Hennepin County Attorney’s race is perhaps the most important race facing area voters this fall,” said Minneapolis Area Chapter of the DFL Senior Caucus Political Director Cara Letofsky. “We thought it was important to give our members and the community in general an opportunity to hear from the five DFL candidates seeking to be the next head prosecutor for the county.”

Letofsky estimated that 125 people attended the event and another 150 joined online to hear from candidates Anders Folk, Cedrick Frazier, Hao Nguyen, Matt Pelikan and Franscis Shen.
Diane Krenz, an assistant Hubbard County attorney who is also running for the seat, is not seeking DFL endorsement and did not attend.

Meet the five DFL candidates
Matt Pelikan, attorney and candidate for Minnesota attorney general in 2018, highlighted his private law practice and past work for Democratic Party candidates. He said that Moriarty made missteps and objected to considering a person’s race in charging decisions. He wants to restore trust in the office and said he will be guided by the principle that “everyone is equal under the law.”

Francis Shen emphasized his work at the University of Minnesota Law School and said the “current criminal justice system isn’t just broken, it’s obsolete.” He called for applying an individualized, neuroscience-informed approach to prosecution and sentencing with a focus on the reasons why crimes are committed.

Anders Folk, former acting United States Attorney for the District of Minnesota, said that “protecting the most vulnerable in the community is job one,” and that he is a “compassionate leader who is collaborative by nature.”

Hao Nguyen said, “I am running because I have the most experience,” and pointed to being a Vietnamese refugee, former police officer and current assistant Ramsey County attorney as preparing him for the job. He said that improving working relations with other jurisdictions and agencies is a priority.

Cedrick Frazier said that his work as state representative for District 43A has helped prepare him to be county attorney and that he would be “open, accessible and responsive,” and “set clear goals and expectations, be collaborative and establish a diverse leadership team.”

At the forum candidates responded to eight prepared questions covering a variety of issues.

On Seniors and Youth
All the candidates favored supporting seniors and youth who have to deal with the criminal justice system.

All the candidates stressed the importance of education to help prevent seniors from being victims of fraud and elder abuse.

Folk stressed the importance of educating family members as well as seniors to help prevent abuse and fraud.

Pelikan said he would “work with Amy Klobucher to create a task force specifically to protect our elderly citizens.”

Nguyen highlighted his work on an elder abuse unit in Ramsey County and the need to work with law enforcement to better address and prevent it.

Shen called for interdisciplinary approaches and cited the RISE Collaborative as a model to help address elder abuse.

On the topic of youth, Frazier said, “Accountability when it’s necessary… but prevention and intervention all the time to make sure they have what they need.”

Regarding youth prosecution and diversion programs, Pelikan acknowledged the importance of working downstream as well as up, and said “once they enter the system, it’s important they have support.”

Nguyen recommended replicating a Ramsey County youth diversion program that includes meetings with the youth suspects, a public defender, community members, support services and the crime victims before any charges are brought.

“All these kids are our kids,” Nguyen said.

Folk criticized current youth detention facilities and called for reopening Hennepin County Home School that was closed in 2021.

“The trick with juvenile justice,” said Folk, “is striking the right amount of balance between compassion for juveniles and a consequence that is sufficient to ensure public safety.” He called for “building out” diversion, restorative justice and group violence intervention programs.

Shen said he favored individualized alternatives aimed at reducing recidivism.

“Incarceration is one of the absolute worst and dumbest things we can do for the trajectory of a young person,” Shen said.

Racial Disparities
When asked what they would do to reduce racial disparities in the criminal justice system, Pelikan said, “I worry sometimes that we have gone too far bending over backwards to make excuses for people who need to face some accountability,” but also expressed concern that it could be used “as an excuse to go back to the failed system that destroyed trust in law enforcement.”

Shen called for recognizing that “systemic racism is a real thing,” researching where “biases and creeping in” and developing better probation, parole and re-entry programs to reduce disparities.

Folk agreed that we need to “admit that we have a problem” and called for making better use of diversion and restorative justice and expungement programs.

Nguyen pointed to his work hiring a diverse staff and his success changing how police handle traffic stops and searches in Ramsey County as things that could be replicated in Hennepin County to reduce racial disparities.
Frazier noted his work at the state level to reduce disparities and called for more work on “upstream” solutions. Frazier recalled a press conference with former Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman after the police killing of George Floyd.

“There was a comment made that we might not be able to criminally charge that officer and it was that that led to violence in the streets,” Frazier said. “I’m going to do everything I can to make sure that doesn’t happen again.”

Police Relationships and Reform
When asked about working with other jurisdictions and police departments Frazier said, “I have those relationships now and I will continue to build on those.” He noted his work passing legislation improving the state’s Board of Peace Officer Standards and Training and empowering them to do independent investigations into police misconduct.

“I am a bridge builder,” Nguyen said, noting his endorsements from the Hennepin County sheriff, and mayors of Eden Prairie, Maple Grove and Edina. Nguyen said he believes that training and policy changes will be important to reform and that attending roll calls and talking with police officers in person will help improve practices.

Folk said he believes that “police reform is something that needs to be woven into the culture of our public safety system.” He said a “different relationship mix” sometimes focused on partnership and sometimes on accountability. He contrasted the “good relationship” former Ramsey County Attorney John Choi had with law enforcement to “what we’ve seen in Hennepin County the last four years.”

Shen said, “Relationships have really soured with our current county attorney’s office… That bridge has been broken. It’s got to be rebuilt and I would certainly commit to do that.”

Shen remarked he does not think that court decrees or agreements result in meaningful reform. “Research says they don’t produce the safety outcome we want,” Shen stated. “The community has got to take the lead and community policing is the answer.”

Pelikan stressed the importance of supporting law enforcement “when all they’re doing is trying to keep us safe,” but said when they break the law “they have to be held accountable just like everyone else.”

Pelikan said police reform starts with relationships and that the public must “keep police as respected allies.” He said he believes Moriarty made a mistake when she “blindsided law enforcement” with some reform efforts.

PRIMARY AUG. 11
Hennepin County voters will vote on Aug. 11, 2026 and will be able to vote for one candidate. The two top vote getters will compete at the general election on Nov. 3.

View the forum on the Minneapolis Area Chapter of the DFL Senior Caucus YouTube page. Follow the QR code above to get there quickly.