Dear Neighbors, I am sure many of you have heard about the challenges as the House prepares for session to begin next week. I wanted to take the time to explain the gravity of the situation, why my DFL colleagues and I are working to protect the integrity of our institution, and why it’s important to our district. This past election, Minnesotans voted for equal numbers of Democratic and Republican state representatives. A 67-67 tie in the 134-member Minnesota House of Representatives is extremely rare. It takes 68 votes to pass a bill, so neither side can do anything without some help from the other. Republicans will have a one-seat advantage for two-weeks–not a majority–at the start of the legislative session because a court determined that the elected Democrat in district 40B did not meet the residency requirement. A special election has been called for January 28, when it is very likely that another Democrat will be elected, bringing the House back into an even balance. While a tie in the House will present challenges for many of our district’s priorities in the Legislature, Democrats and Republicans have reached many compromises to move our state forward, and I am confident we can govern together on a bipartisan basis to move Minnesotans towards a brighter future. For the past two months, good-faith negotiations have been taking place between DFL and Republican leaders. Unfortunately, my Republican colleagues have walked away from power sharing negotiations, including many agreed upon conditions on how this session would function. In a surprising change of direction, they are leaving all that work behind and are now attempting to engage in an illegitimate power grab to try to undo the progress we made over the past two years. During a January 6 press conference, Republicans confirmed their plan to try to use a two-week, one-seat advantage to seize control of the House for the next two years. Even more troubling, they say they will use their temporary one-vote advantage to refuse to unseat Brad Tabke of Shakopee, a duly elected-DFL state representative, who won a close race even if (as expected) his election is upheld by the courts. This would trigger another special election in a close district, disenfranchise 21,980 voters who voted in the November election, and extend the Republican temporary plurality. It is an outrageous power grab that has never been done in Minnesota. If Republicans refuse to honor the election results, Democrats will be forced to stay away from the Capitol to deny the Republicans a quorum. This would delay the scheduled beginning of session by two weeks to prevent Republicans from electing their Speaker, appointing all Republican committee chairs, firing DFL staff, kicking out a duly elected DFL member, and grabbing power for the next two years. Why does all of this matter to our District? If the Republicans irreversibly seize control of the House for the next two years, it will significantly limit my ability to advocate for Duluth and our entire region. The number of committees I serve on would likely be reduced. I would likely have no leadership role in setting committee agendas. My bills likely would not get a hearing and be unlikely to be appointed to any conference committees with the Senate. Each of these are opportunities for me to influence the happenings at the Capitol in favor of the priorities you elected me to deliver on with and for you. The legislature has important work to do, and I want to get started as soon as possible, sharing power with Republican legislators. I am hopeful that a power-sharing agreement can be adopted before the new legislative session begins on January 14. At this time, my focus is on doing everything within my power to make that happen. I have no interest in denying quorum by not attending floor session and I am excited to continue working on bipartisan bills. This situation can be resolved, but first Republicans need to return to the negotiating table. I’m asking you to join me in the call and ask our colleagues on the other side of the aisle to show up to the negotiating table so we can work for Minnesota, together. |