PIKE TWP— A rural Virginia resident is the first person to announce his candidacy for the Minnesota House District 6B seat currently held by Jason Metsa, DFL-Virginia. Shaun Hainey, of Pike Township, announced on Monday that he’ll seek to replace Metsa, who is running for the Eighth District congressional seat being vacated by Rick Nolan.

 “I live in Pike because it’s where family is, it’s where my wife and I want to raise our children,” said Hainey in his announcement. “This is where our kids can play outside without concern, nature is right in our backyard, and whenever we need a break we can just hop on a horse and go for a ride. I am committed to bringing our region’s values and work ethic to the capitol to protect this way of life and build a sound economic future for our region.”

 Hainey currently works for the St. Louis County Assessor’s Office and is a member of the AFSCME union. He is also Vice Chair for Friends of the (Olcott Park) Greenhouse, is an active Rotarian, and co-teaches Sunday school at United in Christ Lutheran Church. Hainey has served on the Quad-Cities Early Childhood Coalition and Laurentian Chamber of Commerce Legislative Affairs Committee along with charitable boards for Volunteers in Education and the Iron Range Partnership for Sustainability.

Hainey grew up in Pine Springs, a metro area community, and attended the University of Minnesota-Morris, where he earned a degree in political science with minors in economics and psychology. He lives with his wife, Cassandra (Maki) Hainey, and their four children on an aspiring hobby farm.  

 “My first priority is education. I want to help prepare our children to thrive in our natural resource-based economy and create opportunities for entrepreneurship — contributing to a more vibrant Iron Range and giving people more reasons to stay or return to the area,” he said. 

Hainey is also an advocate for increasing local food production, which has been a focus of the Iron Range Partnership for Sustainability.

Hainey will host listening sessions to answer questions and listen to the concerns of voters on Friday, March 9 from 6-8 p.m. at Boomtown in Eveleth and Sunday, March 11, from 1-3 p.m. at the Olcott Park Greenhouse. At the greenhouse, children are welcome to participate in a scavenger hunt and music will be provided by Horse Fzce. 

For more information, visit HaineyForMN.com.