Susan Kaying Pha is a Hmong-American politician and businesswoman who is currently serving as a member of the Minnesota Senate for the 38th district. She was elected in November 2022 and assumed office on January 3, 2023.
Pha moved to the United States from Laos with her family as a refugee at the age of three. She was raised in San Diego and Fresno, California, as the oldest of eight children and part of the Hmong community in the United States.
From 1996 to 2011, Pha worked as a real estate agent. In 2010, she founded a publishing company. Pha was elected to the Brooklyn Park City Council in 2016. She was elected to the Minnesota Senate in November 2022, becoming the second Hmong woman to do so.
In the Minnesota Senate, Pha represents the 38th district which covers areas of the northern Twin Cities including Brooklyn Park. She is the vice chair of the Capital Investment Committee and serves on the Housing and Homelessness Prevention Committee.
Pha’s career experience includes working as a real estate consultant and as a small business owner. She lives in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, and is married with five children.
