Neighbors, 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, but it requires that Democrats and Republicans govern together on a bipartisan basis. I'm excited for this opportunity. Unfortunately, my Republican colleagues are being shortsighted, and have walked away from power sharing negotiations, and are now attempting to engage in an illegitimate power grab. During a January 6 press conference, Republicans confirmed they plan to try to use a two-week, one-seat advantage* to seize control of the House for the next two years, even though Minnesotans voted for equal numbers of DFL and Republican state representatives. Republicans also made clear that they would use their temporary one-vote advantage to unseat a duly elected DFL state representative and order a special election regardless of the fact he won, in effect disenfranchising 21,980 voters who cast their ballots in the November election. That is outrageous and has never been done in Minnesota history. I’m calling on my Republican colleagues to abandon their illegitimate power grab, honor the election results, and sign a power-sharing agreement. A majority in the Minnesota House is 68 members, Republicans have only 67 members, and it takes 68 votes to pass a bill, which means we have to work together on a bipartisan basis to get things done. 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 sessions. I want to get to work with my Republican colleagues on January 14 and govern under shared power. This situation can be resolved, but first Republicans need to return to the negotiating table. * - There’s a special election on January 28th in 40B, which is a heavily DFL district. |