Planned Parenthood North Central States CEO Ruth Richardson says she decided to leave her seat in the Minnesota House of Representatives to allow sufficient time to find a replacement.
Richardson made her statement to the StarTribune, not long after making her announcement on social media.
She was elected three times to represent House District 52B, which is in the east metro and includes the southern tip of St. Paul, Mendota Heights, Inver Grove Heights, Bloomington, and Burnsville.
According to state law, Governor Walz must set a special election for the House District 52B seat before the next legislative session, which begins next February 12th.
Richardson tweeted her decision late Friday, five years after first being elected to the House.
Richardson became leader of the Planned Parenthood regional office last year after the US Supreme Court struck down Roe versus Wade.
She called being in the legislature the honor of a lifetime.