Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty will not run for re-election

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty will not run for re-election in 2026, choosing to focus on creating enduring change in the system over the final 17 months of her administration.

“I ran for this office to do the hard work; the work that desperately needed doing and the work the voters chose when I was elected in 2022 by 16 points,” Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said. “We’ve become accustomed to elected officials who don’t deliver results and end up more invested in clinging to power than doing the work of the people. That is not me. As I have weighed whether I wanted to spend the last year and a half of my term focused primarily on campaigning or continuing to transform this office, the choice became clear. I want to focus on running the office, rather than running for office.”

“I trust that the voters who overwhelmingly elected me just two and a half years ago will choose a candidate in 2026 to build on our work, which is proving to make Hennepin County safer and more just.”

Dr. Irene Fernando, Hennepin County Commissioner and Board Chair

“County Attorney Mary Moriarty has been a tireless fighter for justice in an increasingly unjust world. I’ve been grateful for her partnership to date. I’m certain that our partnership will continue as we work in our respective positions to ensure better outcomes for residents through the remainder of her term. I’m grateful for the Attorney’s leadership and tenacity. There is still a lot we will accomplish together in the next 18 months.”

Accomplishments To Date

At County Attorney Moriarty’s direction, the HCAO has devoted more resources to preventing violence before it starts—and it’s working. Violent crime continues to drop and HCAO recently held the office’s first ever violence prevention summit.
HCAO continues to hold those who cause harm accountable, day in and day out, always with an emphasis on what’s safest for the public now and in the future.
CA Moriarty has also focused on correcting past wrongs, by supporting the exonerations of two wrongfully convicted men—Marvin Haynes and Edgar Barrientos-Quintana, and establishing the HCAO’s Conviction Integrity Unit, the first of its kind at the county level in Minnesota.
CA Moriarty created the Division of Professional Standards which, while covering many topics, has brought the office into compliance with its statutory and constitutional obligations under Brady/Giglio. As a result, court proceedings are fairer and a barrier to building trust with the community has been removed.
CA Moriarty directed the creation of a new policy on U and T Visa Certifications, a longstanding but underutilized public safety tool to encourage immigrant victims to report crimes and assist in prosecutions. More than 500 certifications have been issued since the policy was rolled out in 2024—more than all total certifications issued by the HCAO from 2008 to 2023.
CA Moriarty directed the creation of the office’s hugely popular expungement clinics to take another step toward a more equitable legal system, helping people who have completed their sentences secure jobs, pay increases, and housing. Stability improves safety.
The Youth Auto Theft Early Intervention Initiative is getting resources to children and families before law enforcement needs to submit a case to our office. While this is only one effort within a broad ecosystem, the motor vehicle theft rate continues to drop.
HCAO has worked with our community and county partners to get young people the support and treatment they need. CA Moriarty has helped lead efforts to ensure they have appropriate, safe places to get this help.

CA Moriarty formed the Workers Protection Unit to focus on protecting Hennepin County workers from economic crime. The unit delivered the first felony wage theft conviction in state history earlier this year.

HCAO’s Domestic Abuse Service Center (DASC) moved to a new, purpose-built space for victims of domestic violence to receive trauma-informed assistance.

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