Senior prosecutor Hao Nguyen is second candidate to announce run for Hennepin County Attorney

A second candidate has announced his bid for Hennepin County Attorney, touting his wealth of law enforcement and prosecutorial experience.

Senior Ramsey County Attorney Hao Nguyen said he is the right candidate to replace Mary Moriarty, who has announced she will not seek re-election, because of his unique lived experience.

The south Minneapolis resident has spent 15 years as a prosecutor and was previously a police officer. He identifies as a proud refugee who grew up poor and understands the immigrant experience in Minnesota.

Nguyen joins another candidate, Rep. Cedrick Frazier, a three-term state representative from New Hope, who entered the race last month.

“This campaign is for everyone who believes that they and their neighbors have a right to both equity and dignity,” Nguyen said, flanked by supporters outside the Hennepin County Government Center on Wednesday. “The County Attorney’s job is to keep us safe while also being just at the same time.”

He said he would work to build bridges with law enforcement and championed his history as a police officer in St. Cloud and sheriff’s deputy in Stearns County, along with his years as a prosecutor. He is currently director of the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office trials and appellate divisions and oversees nearly 300 employees. He said he has prosecuted everything from assault to murder.

Standing alongside Nguyen at the announcement were Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt, Ramsey County Attorney John Choi and Shanasha Whitson, the founder of Mothers Against Gun Violence. All endorsed him, as did Attorney General Keith Ellison.

Nguyen’s announcement carried undertones that evoked criticisms of Moriarty’s tenure that are likely to shape the race — he said he would make decisions that were not about him but “based on the law and what the law requires.”

But he also had nothing negative to say about Moriarty, personally.

“I’m not running against anybody,” Nguyen said. “I’m running for something.”

He said one of his biggest mindsets would be collaboration between law enforcement and community groups to make prosecutorial decisions that are fair, equitable and built around the idea that “we are not smarter than the people that we serve.”

He repeated again and again that you could have equity and fairness in criminal justice and not give up on public safety.

Nguyen said he adores and holds sacred the ability to manage a “high-level prosecutor’s office” in Ramsey County. He talked about handling high-level cases like officer-involved shootings and also dealing with the “day-to-day working of the largest prosecution division in Ramsey County.”