Amy T. Koch (born October 8, 1971) is an American politician and a former majority leader of the

Minnesota Senate The Minnesota Senate is the upper house of the Minnesota Legislature, Legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota. At 67 members, half as many as the Minnesota House of Representatives, it is the largest upper house of any State legislature (Unite ...

, where she represented portions of Hennepin and

Wright Wright is an occupational surname originating in England and Scotland. The term 'Wright' comes from the circa 700 AD Old English word 'wryhta' or 'wyrhta', meaning worker or shaper of wood. Later it became any occupational worker (for example, a ...

counties. Koch, the first female Senate majority leader in state history, is also a regular commentator for

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

local media.

Early life, education, and career

Koch grew up in

Buffalo, Minnesota Buffalo is a city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Wright County, Minnesota, Wright County. It is in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area, about 42 miles northwest of Minneapolis on Buffalo Lake (Wright County, Mi ...

, graduating from Buffalo High School in 1990. After briefly attending Concordia College in

Moorhead, Minnesota Moorhead ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Clay County, Minnesota, Clay County, Minnesota, United States, on the banks of the Red River of the North. Located in the Red River Valley, an extremely fertile and active agricultural region, Moo ...

, Koch joined the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

in 1992. While serving in the military, Koch met her former husband, Christopher, and gave birth to her daughter, Rachel. Koch studied Russian at the

Defense Language Institute The Defense Language Institute (DLI) is a United States Department of Defense (DoD) educational and research institution consisting of two separate entities which provide linguistic and cultural instruction to the Department of Defense, other f ...

in California, before being assigned to the

National Security Agency The National Security Agency (NSA) is an intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense, under the authority of the director of national intelligence (DNI). The NSA is responsible for global monitoring, collection, and proces ...

Fort Meade, Maryland Fort Meade is a census-designated place (CDP) in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States. The population was 9,324 at the 2020 census. It is the home to the National Security Agency, Central Security Service, United States Cyber Command an ...

. She graduated with honors at all stages of her military training and received the

Joint Service Commendation Medal The Commendation Medal is a mid-level United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issues its own version of the Commendation Medal, with a fift ...

for her contribution to the intelligence community. After receiving an

honorable discharge A military discharge is given when a member of the armed forces is released from their obligation to serve. Each country's military has different types of discharge. They are generally based on whether the persons completed their training and the ...

from the Air Force in 1996, Koch returned to

and attended

St. Cloud State University St. Cloud State University (SCSU) is a public university in St. Cloud, Minnesota, United States. Founded in 1869, the university is one of the largest institutions in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. In the fall of 2023, it ...

, where she earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

in 1999. Koch has volunteered as an adult leader for

4-H 4-H is a U.S.-based network of youth organizations whose mission is "engaging youth to reach their fullest potential while advancing the field of youth development". Its name is a reference to the occurrence of the initial letter H four times ...

and served as vice chair of the St. Francis Xavier Parish Council as well as liaison to the Education Advisory Board. In 2016, Koch began working as a political strategist for Hylden Advocacy & Law in Minneapolis. Koch is a part owner of HBK Properties LLC in Buffalo. In 2013, Koch bought Maple Lake Bowl, a bowling alley just north of her home in Buffalo, MN. Koch owned and operated the bowling alley until she sold it in the summer of 2016.

Political career

After leaving the military and returning to Minnesota, Koch became active in local Republican politics. In addition to serving on her local party unit board, Koch actively volunteered for former Congressman Mark Kennedy and former Secretary of State

Mary Kiffmeyer Mary Kiffmeyer (born December 29, 1946) is an American politician. She served as Minnesota Secretary of State from 1999 to 2007 and went on to serve in the Minnesota legislature. A member of the Republican Party of Minnesota, she previously repre ...

. Koch was first elected to the

in a 2005 special election, replacing Mark Ourada, who resigned months earlier. She was re-elected in 2006 and 2010. Koch, a former assistant minority leader, was the first woman to serve as majority leader of the Minnesota Senate, and the first Republican to do so since party affiliation.

Relationship with staffer

On December 15, 2011, in a surprise announcement, Koch said she would resign from her post as majority leader of the

. Republican state senators indicated Koch had an "inappropriate" relationship with a staffer, whose identity would later be confirmed as former state Senate aide

Michael Brodkorb Michael Brodkorb is an American communications consultant, media specialist, researcher, author and former Minnesota Republican activist. Personal life He graduated from high school in Forest Lake, Minnesota in 1992. He attended both the Univer ...

. Koch later apologized and did not seek re-election to another term in the Minnesota Senate.

References

External links

Amy Koch The BlogSenator Koch Web PageMinnesota Public Radio Votetracker: Senator Amy KochProject Vote Smart – Senator Amy Koch ProfileAmy Koch Campaign Web Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Koch, Amy 1971 births Living people Republican Party Minnesota state senators People from Buffalo, Minnesota Military personnel from Minnesota United States Air Force airmen Women in the United States Air Force Women state legislators in Minnesota Defense Language Institute alumni National Security Agency people 21st-century American women politicians 21st-century members of the Minnesota Legislature