ALBERTA LEA — District 27A Rep. Peggy Bennett on Tuesday announced she will seek re-election for a second term in the Minnesota House of Representatives.

Bennett, R-Albert Lea, is a retired first-grade teacher at Sibley Elementary School.

She was initially elected in 2014, earning 53 percent of the vote in a three-candidate race.

“I am running for re-election so I can continue the important work of improving our schools, fixing our child protection system, job creation and improving the lives of our aging loved ones,” Bennett said in a news release.

Bennett, 57, grew up in White Bear Lake and Mound, graduated from Crown College and got her first teaching job in special education in Albert Lea in 1981. She taught her third year in Wells following a round of cuts, then came back to Albert Lea to teach transitioning from special to regular education for seven years before becoming a first-grade teacher. She has a master’s degree from St. Cloud State University.

During her first year in St. Paul, Bennett chief-authored legislation to reduce unnecessary testing in k-12 schools, as well as legislation aimed at addressing Minnesota’s teacher shortage problem.

She also worked to pass a bill designating the Shell Rock River as a state waterway.

“I’m excited about the work we’ve accomplished this past year and am proud of how we prioritized state spending on core state priorities while being respectful of taxpayers’ pocketbooks,” she said.

Some of her favorite legislation passed last session included much-needed rate reimbursement increases for nursing homes and early childhood scholarships.

Bennett is the vice chairwoman of the Education Innovation Policy Committee and serves on the Agriculture Finance Committee and the K-12 Education Finance Committee. Last year she was appointed to the Legislative Child Protection Task Force, which provides oversight and recommends reforms for Minnesota’s child protection system.

She is also a member of a legislative working group looking at ways to improve quality of life for Minnesota’s aging adults and to build on the reforms for rural nursing homes.

This session she said she plans to continue to advocate for local priorities.

She hopes the Legislature can pass a tax bill and a long-term road and bridge bill. She would also like to see more bills like the one passed creating job training partnerships between local businesses and colleges to address job concerns in the area.

Bennett defeated Shannon Savick, DFL-Wells, for the seat in 2014.

The race in the past has drawn state leaders, including gubernatorial candidates, to rally for the candidates. Outside groups have also spent big money on the candidates as both sides struggled for power in the state Legislature.

District 27A encompasses all of Freeborn County and portions of Faribault, Mower, Dodge and Steele counties. The district has historically been a swing district, swinging back to Republican control when Bennett was elected after swinging to DFL control two years before that. Going back, it was Republican for two years and DFL for four years. Before the 2006 election, the district had been long held by Republicans.

Bennett said she looks forward to the campaign season and talking with people in the district about why she would like to continue as representative.

“I’m really looking forward to this,” she said. “I’ve enjoyed it a lot. It has been quite the whirlwind.”

She anticipates a possibly higher turnout this election because of the presidential race.

“The more people involved in government, the better in my mind,” Bennett said.

Gary Schindler, dean of student affairs at Riverland Community College, announced in October he will seek the DFL nomination.

Schindler said he will focus his campaign on workforce development through quality roads and bridges, high-speed broadband Internet, access to workforce housing, investing in the k-12 system and a fairer tax system.

“I’m looking forward to the race for the 27A House seat, and I’m looking forward to discussing the issues with Peggy Bennett concerning how we can make Greater Minnesota the focus of public policy and planning in the state of Minnesota,” Schindler said.

He said he and Bennett have had a positive relationship as candidates in the four months since he announced he was running for the seat, and he noted that both have pledged to run their local campaigns in a positive way.