Allen Shen

Allen Shen is the Republican candidate for Minnesota House of Representatives District 40B in the November 3, 2026 general election, challenging Democratic incumbent David Gottfried; the Republican primary was canceled.[1] A U.S. Army veteran who works in business communication, he previously ran for the seat in 2022.[1]

Allen Shen was born in China and served in the U.S. Army from 1998 to 2010, according to Ballotpedia.[1] He studied at Minnesota State University and earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Minnesota in 2011, and his career experience includes business communication.[1] In a 2022 Ballotpedia survey, Shen said he was raised in Minnesota and had worked in international business overseas and on projects to improve education quality in colleges.[2]

Shen was the Republican candidate in District 40B in 2022, when incumbent Jamie Becker-Finn defeated him in the general election, 67.7 percent to 32.2 percent.[1] In the 2022 survey, he listed protecting constitutional rights, healthcare freedom, and parents' rights in children's education as his key messages, and said he favored lowering or phasing out the Minnesota state income tax and setting term limits for legislators.[2]

Researched from the cited sources on 2026-10-21. Not yet independently fact-checked.