Minnesota state House Democrats stage boycott amid fight over chamber control
Democrats in Minnesota’s state House staged a boycott on Tuesday, walking out and not showing up for the first day of the legislative session in defiance over how the chamber will be divided.
When the state Legislature convened Tuesday but Democrats failed to show up, Republicans vowed to push forward with the session, although questions remain if they have legal authority to do so without quorum, Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) reported.
The House has been thrust into a political quarrel after voters elected 67 Democrats and 67 Republicans in November.
Lawmakers began to plan an agreement that would allow both sides of the aisle to share power in the tied chamber. The House requires a quorum of 68 to conduct business, NBC News reported.
A residency challenge kicked one Democrat from office and the state will hold a special election for Jan. 28 to fill the seat. However, the incident prompted Republicans to try and take control of the chamber with its new majority.
With Democrats following through on their threats to boycott, they are keeping Republicans from electing a state House speaker and other committee leaders.
Minnesota’s Secretary of State Steve Simon adjourned the state House after finding the chamber didn’t meet its 68-member quorum on Tuesday.
Still, GOP members continued with proceedings and voted unanimously to elect state Rep. Lisa Demuth as its next speaker, though the decision will likely be challenged in court, NBC News noted.
Members of the state’s Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party signaled they intended to boycott before Tuesday. The group’s leader, Melissa Hortman, said in a statement the party would not show up to the state Capitol on Tuesday because of the GOP’s reaction to the change in House membership, MPR reported.
Hortman said Democrats had to “protect the will of the voters” by boycotting until the special election concluded, though it’s not exactly known what next steps are for either party in the House.
Hortman also called the continuation of session after Simon’s adjournment a “complete sham.” She told MPR Democrats are planning to file a lawsuit with the state’s Supreme Court to deem Demuth’s speaker election invalid.
In a statement to The Hill, Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party chair Ken Martin called on Republicans to "come back from the brink" and abandon their "outrageous partisan power grab." Martin said the partisan vote by GOP members can't be tolerated and "will not go unanswered."
The Democratic National Committee (DNC) weighed in on the matter. In a statement to The Hill, DNC Chair Jamie Harrison said Minnesota Republicans were attempting to subvert the will of the voters by looking to take the majority and Republican leadership.
"In state after state, Republicans have shown that they will stop at nothing in their pursuit of power, even if it means ignoring the will of the voters," Harrison's statement said. "We stand with Minnesota Democrats who are fighting to ensure the people of Minnesota have the representation they elected."
Updated at 5:35 pm ET.