This article was written by Olivia Notch. Website issues are causing the wrong name to display.
As spring semester starts off, students are starting new classes and falling back into their routines. As schedules get busier, it is likely that many students haven’t had time to pay attention to or are unaware of what is going on within the Minnesota State House of Representatives. Since NDSU’s student body consists of many Minnesotans, and since they are North Dakota’s neighbor, it might be worth it for students to take a look at what is happening east of school.
State and local governments can often seem boring in comparison to the wild antics that take place in Washington DC, but they are equally, if not more important. The policies and decisions made at a local level have the most direct impact on individual lives. The situation in the Minnesota House of Representatives is a perfect example of a robust and somewhat chaotic state government.
After the election in November, the Minnesota House was split completely down the center with 67 Republican seats and 67 Democrat seats. All seemed to be well in the Land of 10,000 Lakes until a judge ruled that Democrat Curtis Johnson had not met his residency requirement to run for office. This means that Curtis Johnson’s election was not legitimate, leaving the Democrats a member short and giving the Republicans a slim majority.
Each state has its own residency requirements for state legislation. According the North Dakota Secretary of State, to run for the State House of Representatives in North Dakota one must simply be a ND resident for one year and live in the district where they are seeking the day of the election. Minnesota, however, requires that candidates live for six months in the district where they are seeking office for 6 months in order to run for the State House as well as be a state resident for a year.
Curtis Johnson did not meet the Minnesota House residency requirements, which has led to a special election to be held on Jan. 28th to fill his seat. Johnson won by thirty percentage points and the Democrats are expected to win in the special election, which would restore the house to an even split. In the meantime, Republicans have attempted to take full advantage of their majority and are hard at work.
In an attempt to keep Republicans from wielding their narrow majority, Democrat members of the House boycotted the first day of the Minnesota state legislative session. Under Minnesota law, there must be 68 members present in order to proceed. In legislative proceedings, this minimum number of representatives is referred to as a “quorum.” On Jan. 14th, roll was taken in the House chamber, 67 members of the House were present. As a result, Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon announced that there were not enough members present to proceed and he left.
Republicans, however, did not leave. They proceeded with the meeting by electing Lisa Demuth as Speaker. Republicans believe that since a majority of the House members were present, they had indeed reached quorum and it was lawful for them to proceed.
It is no surprise that the Democrats were not pleased with this move and responded by filing a lawsuit that would prohibit House Republicans from conducting any further business in the State Capitol.
Amidst this chaos, there is also the issue of Democrat Representative Brad Tabke who won his seat by only 14 votes. Republicans members of the house disputed his victory after it was made evident that 20 ballots had been thrown out and were never counted. Republicans called for a special election to be held. A judge has ruled that Tabke did in fact win his election but Republican Demuth has stated that Tabke should not be seated regardless of what any court says. If Republicans refuse to seat Tabke, this would essentially force Governor Tim Walz to call a special election for Tabke’s seat.
Speaking of Tim Walz, what does he think of the Republicans shenanigans? According to the New York Times, the Democratic governor not impressed with the Republicans’ actions and has called the session invalid.
Needless to say the start of this legislative session is unique and many of Minnesota’s elected officials are not acting as professionally as the public might hope. Minnesotan Republicans are clearly not abiding by state law, and much of what they attempt to do with their slim majority will likely to be found to be legitimate. It is quite obvious in Minnesotan law that 68 members need to be present in order for meetings to proceed, and the Republicans simply haven’t reached that number. The Democrats, however, aren’t necessarily guiltless. One of their own party members did not meet the residency requirement which has resulted in them briefly being the minority party. It could be argued that this is simply a consequence for breaking an election rule. State representatives are paid through tax dollars, and Democrats are essentially refusing to show up to work because the Republicans have an advantage–an advantage that is the result of their own failure to follow election guidelines. This entire situation could have been easily avoided by Democrats which would have allowed the legislative session to begin on time.
The special election to fill Curtis Johnson’s seat is fast approaching. Democrats are expected to win, which should allow them to maintain the even split between them and the Republicans. As for the Brad Tabke situation, it is not entirely clear what will happen, but the courts have acknowledged him as the winner of his election, and it is unlikely that he will lose his seat. Of course, stranger things have happened.