About
Michelle Fischbach (R-Minn.) was first sworn in to the U.S. House of Representatives on Jan. 3, 2021, representing Minnesota’s 7th Congressional District. Trump endorsed her in 2020 but not in 2022, yet she easily won reelection in her very pro-Trump district.
Fischbach has spent most of her career in public office in Minnesota, where she served as acting lieutenant governor from 2018–19 and as a member of the state Senate from 2013–18, serving as its president from 2017–18. She took over as acting lieutenant governor when her predecessor, Tina Smith, was appointed by then Gov. Mark Dayton (D) to replace U.S. Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.), who resigned due to accusations of sexual misconduct. Although one of her constituents filed a court challenge questioning her right to simultaneously serve in Congress and state government, she was allowed to temporarily hold both roles.
After the 2020 presidential election, Fischbach followed the GOP playbook by helping to spread the Big Lie, objecting to the certification of Biden’s Electoral College win, and voting against both impeaching Trump for inciting the mob and establishing a special House committee to investigate the insurrection, among other measures.
January 6, 2021
- Just hours after Trump supporters stormed the Capitol, Fischbach joined 146 other congressional Republicans in refusing to certify Biden’s win of the 2020 presidential election.
- In voting against impeaching Trump for his role in inciting the attack on the Capitol, Fischbach released a statement noting that: “With fewer than seven days remaining in this administration, we should be focused on moving forward and getting back to work on behalf of the American people.”
- Fischbach voted against establishing a House committee to investigate the Jan. 6 attack, claiming that “Democrats refuse to put together a truly bipartisan commission.”
The Big Lie
- In November 2020, Fischbach appeared on Fox News to claim that the presidential election was being “stolen” by Democrats. “They did not win the votes of the American people,” she argued, despite evidence to the contrary. “They are just finding votes at this point.”
- On Dec. 15, 2020, Fischbach joined 25 other incoming GOP representatives in sending a group letter to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) calling for a congressional investigation of the “reported gross violations of our elections process” following the 2020 election.
- In justifying her vote against certifying President Biden’s win, Fischbach claimed that the election was “shrouded in allegations of irregularities and fraud too voluminous to ignore. In order to fulfill my duty to the constitution and my constituents, I believe there must be a proper investigation to consider these claims.”