{{short description|American politician}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = John Kriesel | image = File:John Kriesel Speech 2018.jpg | state = Minnesota | state_house = Minnesota | district = 57A | term_start = January 4, 2011 | term_end = January 7, 2013 | preceded = Karla Bigham | succeeded = ''district redrawn'' | party = Republican Party of Minnesota | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1981|10|7}} | birth_place = Hibbing, Minnesota | death_date = | death_place = | spouse = Kayla Kriesel | alma_mater = Metropolitan State University {{small|(B.A.)}} | profession = Veteran Services Director, motivational speaker, contractor, radio show contributor, legislator, veteran | children = 1 }} '''John M. Kriesel''' (born October 7, 1981) is a Minnesota politician and former member of the Minnesota House of Representatives who represented District 57A, which includes portions of Dakota and Washington counties in the southeastern part of the Twin Cities metropolitan area. A Republican, he is a motivational speaker, veteran service officer, and a contributor on KFXN-FM radio during the "Power Trip Morning Show."<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.leg.state.mn.us/legdb/fulldetail.asp?ID=15354|title = Kriesel, John - Legislator Record - Minnesota Legislators Past & Present}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.johnkriesel.org/?page_id%3D2 |title=About John |accessdate=2011-01-31 |url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110529015031/http://www.johnkriesel.org/?page_id=2 |archivedate=2011-05-29 }}</ref>
Kriesel was elected to the House in 2010. He served on the Capital Investment, the Judiciary Policy and Finance, and the Public Safety and Crime Prevention Policy and Finance committees, and as vice chair of the State Government Finance Subcommittee for the Veterans Services Division.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/members/members.asp?id=15354|title = Kriesel, John - Legislator Record - Minnesota Legislators Past & Present}}</ref> On May 21, 2011, he was one of four Republicans who dissented against the caucus majority by voting against sending a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage to a 2012 referendum; the bill passed, 70–62.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://minnesota.publicradio.org/collections/special/columns/news_cut/archive/2011/05/roll_call_vote_same-sex_ban_am.shtml | title=Roll call vote: Same-sex marriage ban amendment |publisher=Minnesota Public Radio | date= |accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>
Kriesel served in the Minnesota Army National Guard from 1998 to 2008, rising to the level of staff sergeant. He was stationed in Kosovo in 2004 as part of a NATO peacekeeping force and, later, at Camp Fallujah in Iraq. He lost both of his legs in military combat in 2006 in an encounter with an IED, or roadside bomb. He now has prosthetic legs. He was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge, the Purple Heart Medal, and the Bronze Star Medal for his service to his country. He worked as an intern in U.S. Senator Norm Coleman's Washington D.C. office in 2007, addressing constituent concerns and military issues. He also co-authored, with writer Jim Kosmo, ''Still Standing'', an autobiography that details his military career, recovery from his combat injuries and life since.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.leg.state.mn.us/legdb/fulldetail.asp?ID=15354|title = Kriesel, John - Legislator Record - Minnesota Legislators Past & Present}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.johnkriesel.org/?page_id%3D2 |title=About John |accessdate=2011-01-31 |url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110529015031/http://www.johnkriesel.org/?page_id=2 |archivedate=2011-05-29 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.stillstandingstory.com/ |title=Home |website=stillstandingstory.com}}</ref>
Since leaving the Legislature, Kriesel has served as director of veteran services for Anoka County.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.twincities.com/localnews/ci_22451684/|title=John Kriesel enjoying life away from politics|date=26 January 2013}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
== External links == {{MN-legdb|15354}} * [http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/members/members.asp?id=15354 Rep. Kriesel Web Page] * [http://www.votesmart.org/bio.php?can_id=123335 Project Votesmart - Rep. John Kriesel Profile] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20101124090616/http://www.johnkriesel.org/ John Kriesel Campaign Web Site] * [http://www.kare11.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=880394 KARE 11 TV: "From Staff Sgt. to State Rep.; the life journey of John Kriesel"] * [http://www.johnmkriesel.com/ "John Kriesel - Motivational Speaker"] * [http://www.stillstandingstory.com/ "Still Standing: The Story of SSG John Kriesel"] * [http://minnesota.publicradio.org/projects/ongoing/votetracker/legislator_view.php?id=293 "MPR Votetracker: John Kriesel"] * [https://twitter.com/johnkriesel John Kriesel] on Twitter * [http://www.facebook.com/pages/Representative-John-Kriesel/172373006138368 John Kriesel] on Facebook
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kriesel, John}} Category:1981 births Category:Living people Category:American amputees Category:United States Army personnel of the Iraq War Category:Republican Party members of the Minnesota House of Representatives Category:People from Cottage Grove, Minnesota Category:American politicians with disabilities Category:Politicians from Hibbing, Minnesota Category:Minnesota National Guard personnel Category:21st-century members of the Minnesota Legislature