The City of St. Paul has retained an outside law firm to investigate sexual harassment allegations against Mayor Kaohly Her after she allegedly sent a series of vulgar text messages to city staffers.
The inquiry stems from a formal complaint filed by St. Paul Police Chief Axel Henry. The allegations center on claims that Her directed inappropriate sexual comments toward Henry and other city employees, including members of the Saint Paul Police Department, and that she sent text messages described in the complaint as inappropriate and unlawful.
Her, a former state representative, was elected mayor in November 2025 and sworn into office in early January 2026, while Henry has served as police chief since 2022.
According to the letter, “Chief Henry has reached the decision to step forward as a formal complainant against the Mayor after becoming aware that the Mayor’s conduct has extended beyond isolated incidents and has included sexual harassment of subordinate City employees, including members of the Saint Paul Police Department.” The letter further states that by naming himself as the complainant, “Chief Henry is not only seeking to address the wrongdoing but also create a measure of protection for his team, signaling that such conduct will not be tolerated.”
Madel wrote that the city “is on notice that Mayor Her has engaged in illegal conduct towards city employees” and that “litigation is ‘reasonably foreseeable.’” The attorney demanded that the city “immediately take all steps necessary to perform a full filesystem extraction of each of Mayor Her’s mobile phones” to preserve text messages, photos, videos, contacts, emails, and potentially deleted information, according to a report from the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
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BREAKING: Kaohly Her, the Democrat Mayor of St. Paul, MN, is under criminal investigation after she allegedly sent sexually inappropriate messages to St. Paul Police Chief Axel Henry and other city officials. pic.twitter.com/TsiSFGYN3E
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) July 29, 2026
The letter includes a screenshot of a text message allegedly sent by Her to a city employee. “Happy Weiner Wednesday! Wish I was having a 🌭 with you all on 6 today,” the message reads.
Another reported version of the accompanying note expresses regret that she cannot be with the employee to eat a hot dog that day. Beneath the message is a partially redacted image based on an internet meme posted by a comedian earlier in the year. The meme depicts a baby with an adult’s head. The caption above the photo reads, “When she wraps you up in a blanket after you gave her a good weinering,” followed by two laughing emojis.
According to a person familiar with the inquiry, the redacted portion of the image was altered to include the face of a St. Paul police officer assigned to Her’s security detail superimposed on the baby’s body.
The letter describes the cited text as one example among allegations that the conduct extended to other city employees and police officers. It notes concerns that without formal action the behavior could continue unchecked and potentially expose others to retaliation for speaking out. The letter also references claims of sexualized communications and unwanted physical contact directed at Henry.
“To protect confidentiality and the integrity of the process, the City will not comment on an active investigation. The mayor has deep respect for city employees and regrets any unintended impact her actions may have had,” a spokesperson for the mayor’s office said in a statement.
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