Ramsey County Sample Ballot & Voter Guide 2026

Three candidates filed for this open West Side and West Seventh area seat being vacated by longtime board chair Rafael E. Ortega, and the August 11 nonpartisan primary narrows the field to the two who advance to the November 3 ballot.

• Charles S Barklind▾

  Retired St. Paul resident who has sought this Ramsey County seat in earlier cycles, per local voter-guide coverage of the District 5 field. No campaign website, platform statement or press interview could be located for the 2026 cycle, so his entry rests on the Minnesota Secretary of State certified filing alone.
• Rebecca Noecker▾

  

  Noecker is a Saint Paul City Council member and council president, according to MyVillager. Her campaign site says she has more than a decade of municipal government experience and previously served on the West Side Community Organization board and the St. Paul Planning Commission.

  Priorities: Making the county board more transparent and accessible to residents, per her campaign site · Expanding the property tax base to reduce taxes, per MyVillager · Rehabilitating West Seventh Street infrastructure and redeveloping the former county jail site, per MyVillager

  Campaign site →
• María Isa Pérez-Vega▾

  

  Pérez-Vega is a Minnesota state representative for District 65B and chairs the Saint Paul delegation, per her campaign site, and she is a professional artist, musician and owner of Latino Midwest Entertainment, according to MyVillager. Her campaign site says her legislative work included funding to expand more than 5,000 voluntary pre-K seats and $2.4 million for Ramsey County crisis assistance programs.

  Priorities: Protecting essential county services from federal cuts, per MyVillager · Supporting downtown revitalization, per MyVillager · Investing in neighborhood based solutions for unhoused neighbors, per her campaign site

  Campaign site →