The future of Minnesota’s state legislature is uncertain after a judge’s decision sided with the Democratic Party, ruling that the Minnesota House of Representatives requires a majority of all seats to conduct any business. This decision has caused a major standoff between the two parties, as the Minnesota Supreme Court stated that 68 out of the 134 House members must be present for a quorum, meaning the 67 Republican members alone are not enough to move forward.

The Minnesota House is currently deadlocked, with both the Democrats and Republicans each securing 67 seats. However, due to one Democrat being ineligible to serve because of residency issues, the Democrats now have only 66 members, leaving one seat vacant.

Before the issue of eligibility arose, the Democrats and Republicans had reached a power-sharing agreement. But Republicans decided to use their temporary advantage to elect a House Speaker and take control of the House committees. This move could be hard to reverse, especially in a chamber that is split evenly between the two parties, which led to the Democrats deciding to boycott.

On January 13, when the legislature session began, Republicans moved forward and elected their leader, Lisa DeMuth, as House Speaker. In response, the Democrats stayed away from the chamber, swearing in their members privately and refusing to attend to prevent giving Republicans enough votes for a quorum.

The judge who ruled on the case did not declare the Republicans’ actions in the legislature invalid but urged both parties to work together to find a resolution to the issue.

Both parties had hoped the deadlock would end after a special election scheduled for January 28 to fill the vacant seat. However, the state Supreme Court ruled that Governor Tim Walz had called the election too early, as the previous occupant of the seat was still in office when the election announcement was made in December.

Now, with no set date for the election, it seems unlikely that it will occur before March. Moreover, the situation may not end there. Republicans have suggested the possibility of filing petitions to start recall elections against the Democratic lawmakers who are boycotting the House session. In other states, such as Texas and Oregon, both Democrats and Republicans have staged similar boycotts to prevent the other party from pushing forward new laws.

In Minnesota, however, the law allows for recalls if lawmakers fail to perform the duties required of them while in office.

Possible Election of More House Members in the Future

It seems that this issue may not end anytime soon. If the current situation drags on, more House members might face elections before the next scheduled general election in 2026. With the continued divide between the two parties, Minnesota’s state legislature is likely to face a challenging and unpredictable future in the coming months.

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