JANUARY 14, 2025, UPDATE:
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — House Democrats have boycotted the opening day of Minnesota’s 2025 legislative session in an effort to stop Republicans from exploiting a temporary majority to advance their agenda. But GOP representatives forged ahead and named their leader as speaker, a move Democrats immediately rejected. The Democratic side of the House chamber was empty as lawmakers convened Tuesday (Jan. 14, 2025). Secretary of State Steve Simon declared they did not have 68 members he had said would be needed for a quorum and adjourned the House. But Republicans stayed in their seats without him and elected Lisa Demuth as speaker. Democrats rejected that as an “unlawful sham with no legal authority.”
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ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — House Democrats boycotted the opening day of Minnesota’s 2025 legislative session Tuesday (Jan. 14, 2025) in an effort to stop Republicans from exploiting a temporary majority to advance their agenda, but GOP representatives forged ahead and named their leader as speaker in a move that Democrats rejected.
There was applause as Democratic Secretary of State Steve Simon entered the chamber to convene the proceedings in accordance with state law. But the Democratic side of the House chamber was empty and only Republicans replied “present” as a clerk took the roll.
Simon announced they had not reached the 68 members needed for a quorum, declared the chamber adjourned and left.
But Republicans stayed in their seats, saying that with 67 members present they had a quorum. They then voted to elect former Minority Leader Lisa Demuth, of Cold Spring, as speaker, a move that Democrats immediately denounced as an “unlawful sham with no legal authority.”
“Make no mistake: the House was adjourned by Secretary of State Simon with no quorum. The actions of the House GOP were illegal and Lisa Demuth is not speaker,” tweeted Democratic former Majority Leader Jamie Long of Minneapolis.
Demuth vowed to “work tirelessly” to foster a “culture of respect and civility” in the House but didn’t directly mention the boycott in her acceptance speech.
“We owe it to the people that we represent to debate passionately, but we also owe them the respect of agreeing that sometimes we do disagree,” she said. “So let’s focus on what unites us.”
Republicans adjourned the session until Wednesday.
What happens next was not immediately clear. Republican Rep. Harry Niska, of Ramsey, told reporters that the GOP was prepared for a legal challenge.
The House came out of the November election tied 67-67, and top leaders from both parties started to work out a power-sharing agreement that presumed a tie. But a judge late last month declared that a newly elected Democrat didn’t live in his heavily Democratic district.
That gave the GOP a 67-66 majority until a special election can take place in two weeks. Republicans declared their intent to take full advantage until the tie is restored.
The GOP lost a round in the power struggle earlier Tuesday when a different judge rejected a Republican effort to force a special election in another race that Democratic incumbent Rep. Brad Tabke, of Shakopee, won by only 14 votes. Republicans had threatened to use their power to refuse to seat him, even if they lost the court case.
Former Speaker Melissa Hortman, of Brooklyn Park, indicated in a statement that seating Tabke was the key disagreement that she and Demuth could not resolve in talks Monday and Tuesday.
House Democrats held a secret swearing-in ceremony on Sunday night to try to ensure that Tabke and other members could take their seats, a move Republicans denounced.
“Democrats have no other recourse to protect the will of the voters than to deny quorum,” Hortman said in her statement. “Democrats are united in our will to fight Republican efforts to kick Representative Brad Tabke out of the Minnesota House. We cannot allow Republicans to engage in this unprecedented abuse of power, and we will use every tool at our disposal to block it.”
Hortman had proposed a power-sharing agreement for the start of the session that would let Demuth become speaker but then revert to their original deal, assuming that the special election restores the tie.
Under Minnesota law, the secretary of state calls the House to order at the start of a session, declares whether a quorum is present, and hands over the gavel when a speaker is elected. It’s normally a quick formality.
Simon told legislative leaders Friday that the state constitution, statutes and House rules say 68 members must show up for a quorum. He said he had no authority to take further action unless 68 lawmakers are present, so if the 66 Democrats failed to show up, all that lawmakers could do was take attendance and adjourn. He said he would continue to convene and adjourn the House daily until a quorum is present and a speaker is elected.
Republicans disputed his legal analysis, arguing that the vacant seat meant a quorum is just 67, and pressed ahead without him Tuesday.
This is the first time the Minnesota Legislature has faced such a boycott, but similar stalling tactics have been used elsewhere.
Democrats in neighboring Wisconsin went into hiding in 2011 in a standoff with majority Republicans over union rights for public employees. Oregon Republicans staged multiple walkouts in recent years, including a record six-week walkout in 2023 over bills on abortion, gender-affirming care and gun rights. The top Democrat in the Michigan House last month ordered absent members back and barred the doors after a Democrat joined Republicans in skipping out.
The high-stakes poker in the Minnesota House contrasts with calm in the state Senate, which is tied 33-33. Democrats are expected to regain a 34-33 majority after a special election, also set for Jan. 28, to fill the seat of a senator who died last month. Unlike the House, Senate leaders quietly reached a power-sharing deal Sunday.
JANUARY 14, 2025:
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The 2025 session of the Minnesota Legislature could be headed for a rocky start when it convenes Tuesday (Jan. 14, 2025). House Democrats are threatening to boycott opening day, while House Republicans say they’ll try to recall lawmakers who fail to show up. The House came out of the election tied 67-67. Leaders worked out a power-sharing agreement that collapsed after a judge declared that a newly elected Democrat didn’t really live in his district. So the GOP now has a 67-66 majority until a special election in two weeks. The messy power struggle is unusual for a state that historically has prided itself on clean politics.
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ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The 2025 session of the Minnesota Legislature could be headed for a rocky start when it convenes Tuesday (Jan. 14, 2025), with House Democrats threatening to boycott opening day and House Republicans saying they’ll try to recall lawmakers who fail to show up.
The messy power struggle is unusual for a state that historically has prided itself on clean politics, but where Republicans chafed at being frozen out in 2023 and 2024, when Democrats controlled both chambers and Democratic Gov. Tim Walz completed the trifecta of power.
The House came out of the November election tied 67-67, though, and top leaders from both parties worked out most of a power-sharing agreement that presumed a tie. But a judge late last month declared that a newly elected Democrat didn’t really live in his district. So the GOP has a 67-66 majority until a special election in two weeks. It’s in a heavily Democratic district, so the election likely will restore the tie.
House Republicans have declared that they’ll have an “organizational majority” on opening day and that they intend to use it to elect their leader, Lisa Demuth of Cold Spring, as speaker for two years, name the committee chairs, and pursue an agenda that includes preventing fraud in government programs. They’ve also threatened to use their power to prevent the seating of another Democrat who won reelection by only 14 votes, Brad Tabke of Shakopee. A court ruling on that race, where 20 ballots went missing, remained pending Monday.
House Democrats, led by former speaker Melissa Hortman of Brooklyn Park, reject what they’re calling a GOP power grab. They’re threatening not to show when the House convenes at noon on Tuesday, saying there won’t be a quorum without them. They even held a secret swearing-in ceremony for their members Sunday night to make it harder for Republicans to deny anyone their seat.
“It’s outrageous that they’re trying to use this two-week, one-vote edge that they have to potentially kick out newly elected members and to try to seize control for two years, which would completely ignore the will of the voters,” Hortman said at a news conference Monday.
Hortman said she planned to meet with Demuth on Monday evening to offer a compromise that would allow Republicans to elect Demuth as speaker and control the House until after the special election, when they would return to their previous power-sharing agreement. She said one condition would be that Republicans drop their threat to refuse to seat Tabke.
In an interview later Monday, Demuth didn’t reject a deal along those lines — but didn’t say she’d accept it, either.
“I would absolutely be open to having a conversation with Representative Hortman,” Demuth said. “That’s what we have done all along.”
This would be the first time the Minnesota Legislature has faced a boycott to prevent a quorum, but similar stalling tactics have been used elsewhere.
For example, Democrats in neighboring Wisconsin went into hiding in 2011 in a standoff with majority Republicans over union rights for public employees. Oregon Republicans staged multiple walkouts in recent years, including a record six-week walkout in 2023 over bills on abortion, gender-affirming care and gun rights. The top Democrat in the Michigan House last month ordered absent members back and barred the doors after a Democrat joined Republicans in skipping out.
The high-stakes poker in the Minnesota House contrasts with calm in the state Senate, where Democrats are expected to regain a 34-33 majority after a special election Jan. 28 to fill a vacancy caused by a senator’s death late last month. Unlike the House, the top Senate Democratic and GOP leaders quietly worked out a power-sharing deal Sunday.
Under Minnesota law, the secretary of state calls the House to order at the start of a session, declares whether a quorum is present, and hands over the gavel when a speaker is elected. It’s normally a quick formality.
Democratic Secretary of State Steve Simon told legislative leaders Friday that his reading of the state constitution, statutes and House rules is that 68 members must show up for a quorum. Republicans argue that the vacant seat means a quorum is just 67. But Simon said he has no authority to take further action unless 68 lawmakers are present, so all they could do would be to take attendance and adjourn. He said he’ll continue to convene and adjourn the House daily until a quorum is finally present and a speaker is elected so that normal business can begin.
Republican leaders threatened Monday to seek recalls for “nonfeasance” of any Democratic representatives who aren’t present for the roll call on Tuesday, a cumbersome process that requires state Supreme Court approval.
“We are committed to holding every legislator accountable,” state GOP Chairman Alex Plechash told reporters. “If you don’t show up for the job, you shouldn’t keep it.”
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