ST. PAUL, Minn. — A transgender woman from Minnesota has announced her bid for a seat in the U.S. House, representing Minnesota’s 2nd Congressional District.

Paula Overby, 59, believes she will be the first openly transgender person from Minnesota to run for Congress.

Overby, a quality assurance analyst from Eagan, has never been a candidate or held appointed office.

She will face Thomas Craft, another political newcomer, and Mike Obermueller, who lost a 2012 bid to unseat U.S. Rep. John Kline, R-Lakeville. Kline has held the seat for more than a decade.

Overby acknowledged her gender identity may be a polarizing issue, but she doesn’t want it to define her candidacy.

Overby tells the St. Paul Pioneer Press that she’ll focus on reforming what she believes is a broken campaign finance system.

Associated Press contributed to this report.