ST. PAUL  — Nearly three dozen applicants are vying for the top job at MNsure, but the health insurance exchange’s interim chief executive isn’t one of them.

MNsure opened the chief executive spot this summer and received 34 applications, a MNsure spokesman said Friday. Former CEO Scott Leitz stepped down in May to take another job.

Allison O’Toole stepped up from a deputy role to lead MNsure after his departure but she isn’t seeking the job permanently. She informed agency staff in a Thursday email that she didn’t apply.

MNsure’s board of directors aims to choose a successor in September. It will be MNsure’s third permanent CEO in two years.

Spokesman Joe Campbell said O’Toole will stick around the agency long enough to ensure a smooth transition.