ST. PAUL, Minn. — On Thursday, Minnesota House Democrats reconvened at the state Capitol following a power-sharing agreement with Republicans that put an end to a more than three-week impasse preventing legislative action.
As part of the agreement, Republican leader Lisa Demuth from Cold Spring was appointed as speaker for a two-year term, marking a milestone as she becomes the first person of color to hold this position in the House.
Since January 14, all 66 Democrats had been boycotting House sessions to block the necessary quorum of 68 members required for the chamber’s activities. When Secretary of State Steve Simon called the roll, all but one Democrat, along with all 67 Republicans, were present, leading to Demuth receiving the speaker’s gavel amidst applause from both parties.
Prior to the election, negotiations around a power-sharing arrangement were based on the expectation that the House would see an even split of 67-67. However, a ruling from a judge in December identified that a Democratic candidate had mistakenly won a seat due to residency issues, resulting in an unexpected temporary majority for Republicans. Consequently, this led to the collapse of the original agreement.
A special election is set for March 11 to fill the vacant seat, with expectations leaning towards a Democratic win that would restore the 67-67 tie. In the aftermath, both parties will co-chair most committees with equal representation, although Democrats will lead and hold a majority in the committee focused on investigating potential fraud within government programs.
The newly formed agreement includes checks on the typical broad powers of the speaker. Major decisions, including which legislation will be discussed, will require consensus between both parties, preventing Demuth from unilaterally blocking legislation.
In her inaugural speech as speaker, Demuth committed to promoting “a culture of respect and constructive debate” in their proceedings.
“The people of Minnesota have granted us an exceptional opportunity with this closely divided House,” she noted. “They expect us to surpass partisan politics and collaborate on solutions. Our task is to demonstrate that government can successfully address their needs. Minnesotans are relying on us for substantive results, not just political theatrics or ideological gains.”
Republicans have claimed they achieved significant concessions through the talks, while Democrats argue that the final agreement closely resembled their earlier proposals made before the session commenced.
“It’s unfortunate that it took almost four weeks to finalize this agreement. This could have been avoided; we could have respected the voters’ choices and initiated the session in a bipartisan spirit from day one,” stated Melissa Hortman, the leading House Democrat and former Speaker, during a press briefing.
The last incident of a tied House occurred in 1979, culminating in a power-sharing arrangement following extensive discussions. Under that agreement, Republicans assumed the speakership while Democrats oversaw the three most influential committees. Although the system functioned adequately during much of the session, it eventually faltered in the closing weeks, necessitating a special session to finalize essential legislation.
According to findings from the National Conference of State Legislatures, tied chambers are not particularly rare and often yield results surpassing expectations.
The current deal assures House Democrats that there will be no efforts from the GOP to challenge a Democrat who narrowly won reelection by just 14 votes in a contested district where 20 ballots went missing. An ethics committee is set to investigate the election but has no plans for further action.
This week, the Republican Party of Minnesota increased pressure by initiating a recall effort aimed at all 66 Democratic representatives. The recall process in the state is intentionally rigorous, and GOP executive director Jennifer DeJournett noted that the entire undertaking could take up to 10 months.
The agreement does not impose any requirements for the party to abandon its recall campaign, and while Hortman remains optimistic that the courts will dismiss the petitions based on past attempts, the state party is committed to proceeding with the effort.
“We will press on with the recall to ensure that there are repercussions for the Democrats’ inaction,” asserted State GOP Chair Alex Plechash in a statement.
