Minnesota GOP, DFL at odds over majority status in upcoming election
ST. PAUL, Minn. — A major power dispute has erupted at the Minnesota State Capitol, jeopardizing the Jan. 14 start of the legislative session.
Republican leaders announced on Monday they currently have a majority and control of the House due to legal disputes involving two seats.
Democrats see it differently. They say the legislature is tied and they're threatening a boycott of the first two weeks of the session.
"If there is no power-sharing agreement, we will not be here," said DFL House Speaker-designate Melissa Hortman. "To pretend that they have a majority while acknowledging they can't do a single thing with 67 votes just shows the naivete of their current position."
Hortman says Democrats will be working the first two weeks of the session, but they just may not be at the Capitol.
"We will be meeting with constituents in our district, we will be meeting with cities, mayors, fire chiefs," Hortman said.
A party holds the majority in the House if it has 68 seats. Republicans will have a 67-66 majority for the first weeks of the session, which means official legislative work can't be done.
But Republican House Speaker-designate Lisa Demuth insists her party does have a majority, and DFL members who don't show up will be targeted for special recall elections.
"There is absolutely no reason why Democrats wouldn't show up on the first day and be ready to work for their constituents. There is no reason taxpayers should be on the hook for people who are not going to be at their jobs," Demuth said. "We will be showing up on Jan. 14 ready to do the work that Minnesotans have sent us to the House of Representatives to do."
WCCO asked Gov. Tim Walz to comment on the dispute and the possibility his party members might not show up for the first weeks of session, but has not heard back as of early Monday evening.
At the heart of the dispute are disagreements over two different House seats.
The special election dispute
Minnesota Republicans filed a petition to the state Supreme Court Monday, hoping to delay a special election.
The authors of the petition — the Republican Party of Minnesota and two members of the group Minnesota Voters Alliance — allege Walz "unlawfully" ordered the special election for House District 40B before a vacancy in the House took effect.
District 40B, which includes Roseville and parts of Shoreview, is currently represented by Jamie Becker-Finn, whose term ends at noon on Jan. 14. Becker-Finn didn't seek re-election.
DFL candidate Curtis Johnson won the seat in the November election, but a Ramsey County judge ruled last month that he didn't meet residency requirements for the district and is not eligible to serve in that office.
The petitioners say Walz's writ of special election should be invalidated because it was issued on Dec. 27, 2024, with the vote set for Jan. 28. However, they argue that state law requires special elections to be held 22 days after the start of the legislative session, which will be on Jan. 14 — making Feb. 5 the earliest date for the election to be held.
The petitioners also insist that since Johnson's win was invalided, he's not an incumbent and can't resign from an office he never held.
"State law requires the governor to call a special election as soon as possible," a spokesperson for Walz said. "Republicans are trying to use the courts to prevent democratic legislators from being seated."
Besides Walz, the petition also names Secretary of State Steve Simon, Ramsey County Auditor Tracy West and David Triplett, the county's chief election officer.
Oral arguments in the case are set for Jan. 15, the day after the start of session.
The missing ballot dispute
Republicans are also continuing to challenge the election in House District 54A, where DFL incumbent Rep. Brad Tabke led GOP challenger Aaron Paul on election night by just 14 votes.
A recount confirmed the lead, but 21 ballots were unaccounted for, which is beyond the margin of victory. Investigators soon found one of the ballots gave an additional vote to Tabke, but 20 of them — all from the same precinct — were likely thrown away.
Last month, 12 voters linked to the missing ballots testified in a two-day election contest trial, where half said they voted for Tabke, and the other half for Paul.
Legal rulings in both House cases are expected soon. What is unclear is when the legislature will actually get down to business.
