Dean Phillips

Dean Benson Phillips (né Pfefer; born January 20, 1969) is an American politician, businessman, and former presidential candidate who served from 2019 to 2025 as the U.S. representative for Minnesota's 3rd congressional district. A member of the Democratic Party, Phillips was an executive in the food and beverage industry before entering politics. Formerly the president and CEO of his family's distilled spirits business, Phillips Distilling Company, he also was the co-owner of Talenti Gelato, Belvedere Vodka, and the Twin Cities-based coffeehouse chain Penny's. Phillips was first elected in 2018, defeating six-term Republican incumbent Erik Paulsen. He became the first Democrat to win the seat in sixty years, and was reelected twice by comfortable margins. In November 2023, Phillips announced that he would not run for another term. Phillips was considered a moderate Democrat and briefly co-chaired the House Democratic Policy and Communications Committee. Despite consistently voting in support of President Joe Biden's policy positions, Phillips challenged him for the Democratic Party nomination in the 2024 presidential election. Running a long-shot campaign centered around providing younger leadership, he received four delegates to the 2024 Democratic National Convention, the second-most of any candidate in the primaries, making him the runner-up to Biden.