Negotiations to resolve a power struggle for control of the Minnesota House have stalled, which likely means a continued boycott by Democratic-Farmer-Labor members that’s now more than two weeks old.
House Republicans drafted a motion on Monday, Jan. 27 to ask absent Democrats to end their boycott, and for those who remain absent to forgo their legislative salary, but Secretary of State Steve Simon adjourned the House floor before the motion could be heard.
As a quarrel over power hits its two-week mark, many around the Capitol wonder when the Minnesota Legislature’s session will feel real.
Operations of the Minnesota House have ground to a halt as Democrats continue to boycott the session, and both parties are unable to agree on how to proceed. Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon presided over the House session Monday,
The DFL’s boycott of House proceedings headed into its third week Monday. House GOP and DFL leaders hadn’t reached a deal after meeting over the weekend and again Monday morning.
A Minnesota Supreme Court ruling made clear that Republicans can’t run the state House on their own, but that doesn’t mean the chamber will get up and running right away.
The order should force Republicans back to the table for a power-sharing agreement, likely similar to the state Senate, which is also tied between Democrats and Republicans during what has become a contentious 2025 state House session.
St. Cloud, say an agreement should be made until the 40B special election is completed. On Nov. 5, voters sent 67 Republicans and 67 Democrats to St. Paul. Republican Speaker-designate Rep.
The justices, in a written ruling released Friday afternoon, agreed with House Democratic leaders and Secretary of State Steve Simon who argued that a quorum in the House was 68 members under the state constitution, not the 67 that Republicans claimed. The Supreme Court cited an article in the Minnesota Constitution as part of their reasoning.
Republican state representatives are honoring a Minnesota Supreme Court ruling that the House must have 68 members present to conduct business. But Democratic-Farmer-Labor members say they still won’t show up at the Capitol until the sides reach a power-sharing agreement.
Minnesota lawmakers hit a reset after Supreme Court ruling, Monday could feel like a scene from the movie “Groundhog’s Day” in the Minnesota House, with a reboot of a session that started almost two weeks earlier.
The Minnesota Supreme Court issued an order Friday afternoon saying 68 members of the Minnesota House constitute a quorum, an opinion favoring House Democrats. The Friday, Jan. 24 order, which will be followed by an opinion,