Andrea Jenkins

Andrea Jenkins (born May 10, 1961) is an American politician, writer, performance artist, poet, and transgender activist. She is known for being the first Black openly transgender woman elected to public office in the United States, serving from January 2018 to January 2026 on the Minneapolis City Council and as the council's president from 2022 to 2024.

Jenkins moved to Minnesota to attend the University of Minnesota in 1979 and was hired by the Hennepin County government, where she worked for a decade. Jenkins worked as a staff member on the Minneapolis City Council for 12 years before beginning work as curator of the Transgender Oral History Project at the University of Minnesota's Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection in Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Studies.

Early life and education Born in 1961, Andrea Jenkins was raised in North Lawndale, Chicago. She has said she grew up in "a low-income, working-class community" and "lived in some pretty rough places." She was raised by a single mother, Shirley Green, who was "very loving and very much concerned that we get a good education."

When she was young and still presenting as male, she participated in the Cub Scouts and played football at Robert Lindblom Math & Science Academy before moving to Minneapolis in 1979 to attend the University of Minnesota.

In her 20s, Jenkins married a woman, became a parent, came out as gay, and divorced. During which, Jenkins worked as a vocational counselor for the Hennepin County government.

In 2005, Elizabeth Glidden was elected to the City Council and hired Jenkins as an aide, in part for Jenkins's extensive network that she had built up during her time in Lilligren's office. While on Glidden's staff, Jenkins earned a fellowship dedicated to transgender issues and helped to establish the Transgender Issues Work Group in 2014.

In 2015, after 12 years as a policy aide with the Minneapolis City Council, Jenkins began work at the University of Minnesota's Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection in Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Studies where she curates the Transgender Oral History Project (TOHP). Jenkins’ campaign slogan was "Leadership. Access. Equity." On November 7, 2017, Jenkins won the election with more than 70% of the vote. The Minneapolis City Council has only had six other Black members. During the 2017 election, three Black council members won their races.

Jenkins was reelected to the Minneapolis City Council in November 2021, and was named City Council President on January 10, 2022, in a unanimous vote. She did not seek reelection in 2025, and retired after her third term in office ended on January 5, 2026.

Vehicle blocking incident On June 27, 2021, Jenkins, the vice president of the Minneapolis City Council, was involved in a confrontation with racial justice activists at a Pride event in downtown Minneapolis. A group that included Donald Hooker Jr, a leader with Twin Cities Coalition for Justice 4 Jamar (referring to Jamar Clark), blocked the car Jenkins was a passenger in for several hours and presented a list of six demands that Jenkins was asked to sign her agreement to. The demands include dropping charges against protesters in recent demonstrations, calling for the immediate resignation of Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, continuing the closure of George Floyd Square, and providing more information about investigations of recent police killings. After Jenkins signed the agreement, activists moved out of the way to allow the vehicle to drive away. Hooker posted a 23-minute video of part of the encounter to Facebook. In a statement about the incident, Jenkins said she was treated inhumanely and held against her will by the demonstrators. The editorial board of the Star Tribune newspaper criticized what is described as attempted intimidation of Jenkins and compared aspects of the blocking incident to the 2021 United States Capitol attack.

Media recognition In 2010, Jenkins won the Naked Stages grant from the Jerome Foundation and Pillsbury House Theater. She created "Body Parts: Reflections on Reflections".

Jenkins was one of several dozen women featured on the January 29, 2018, Time cover. The article was about the many women who ran for office in 2017 and 2018. Five of the women featured were lesbian and transgender candidates, all recipients of money from the LGBTQ Victory Fund.

In June 2020, in honor of the 50th anniversary of the first LGBTQ pride parade, Queerty named her among the fifty heroes "leading the nation toward equality, acceptance, and dignity for all people". She was included in the 2022 Fast Company Queer 50 list.

Personal life Jenkins is a performance artist, poet, and writer who is bisexual and queer. She is a grandmother. Her own mother now lives in Ward 8. She has a partner of eight years. Jenkins was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2017.

She has participated in the Trans Lives Matter movement and chaired the board of Intermedia Arts.