Cheryl Youakim, born on May 29, 1969, is an American politician who has been serving in the Minnesota House of Representatives since 2015. She is a member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL) and represents District 46B in the western Twin Cities metropolitan area. This district includes the cities of Hopkins and Edina, and parts of Hennepin County.1
Youakim attended Winona State University and the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, graduating with a bachelor’s degree. She served on the Hopkins city council from 2005 to 2014. Youakim was first elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives in 2014, after DFL incumbent Steve Simon resigned to run for Minnesota Secretary of State, and has been reelected every two years since.
From 2019 to 2020, Youakim chaired the Education Policy Committee, and from 2021 to 2022 she chaired the Property Tax Division of the Taxes Committee. Since 2023, she has chaired the Education Finance Committee, and sits on the Education Policy, Taxes, and Ways and Means Committees.
Youakim is married to her husband, Jacques. They have three children and reside in Hopkins, Minnesota. Youakim has been married to Jacques Youakim (Hopkins School Teacher) since 1992. They are proud parents to Madeline, Gannon & Jacob. Since 1997, they have lived in Hopkins and are involved in their community on many different levels.
Cheryl is currently the state representative for Hopkins, Edina, and St. Louis Park and a former Hopkins City Council Member. She has a B.A. in Journalism from the University of Minnesota, a Masters in Public Administration from the St. Mary’s University, and works in our public school classrooms as a paraprofessional when the legislature is not in session.
