Minnesota Supreme Court sides with Democrats in state House dispute

The Minnesota Supreme Court handed Democrats a major win Friday, effectively ruling that Republicans didn’t have enough members to conduct business in the Minnesota House.

The state’s highest court ruled that a quorum — the necessary number of members needed to conduct business — is 68 members out of 134 officials.

Republicans had been conducting business, electing a Speaker and introducing legislation with 67 members present, arguing that with one vacant House seat, 67 members represented a majority of the 133 current elected officials.

But the state Supreme Court disagreed with their interpretation of a quorum.

“Vacancies do not reduce the number required for a majority of each house to constitute a quorum,” the court ruled. “By statute, the total number of seats in the Minnesota House of Representatives is 134 seats.”

Both parties have been at a loggerheads over control of the state House. The November election initially gave both sides a 67-67 tie in the House. But things quickly unraveled when a judge ruled that a Democratic candidate hadn’t properly met district residency requirements, leaving his seat vacant.

A separate Democrat, state Rep. Brad Tabke (D), initially saw his election in flux, too, when it was discovered that 20 ballots had been missing. Tabke had only narrowly won his election by 14 votes.

A judge ultimately ruled that Tabke had won the election after receiving enough testimony from voters that solidified his win. But Republicans were noncommittal about seating him.

Taken together, Republicans effectively argued that because they had a 67-66 majority, they could elect their own Speaker and conduct business. Democrats argued that 68 members represented a quorum and have boycotted the start of the session.

Democrats had offered to allow Republicans to elect a Speaker for the temporary period if they pledged to revert back to a power-sharing agreement once the special election for the vacant House seat was conducted. Democrats expect to win that seat, which would put the House back to a tie again.

Neither side was able to find middle ground, with Democrats ultimately turning to the courts to figure out how many members were needed to conduct business.

“Republicans tried to seize power that the voters did not give them,” House Democratic Leader Melissa Hortman said in a statement, responding to the news.

“Now that it is clear Republicans must work with Democrats for the House to operate, I am hopeful we will be able to shortly negotiate an acceptable path forward. We’re ready to roll up our sleeves and return to the negotiating table immediately,” she added.

Meanwhile, House GOP Leader Lisa Demuth issued a statement criticizing Democrats for boycotting the session, a preview of what may very well be a power struggle between the two parties.

“This decision drives home the fact that House Democrats are disrespecting not just their own constituents, but the entire state of Minnesota by refusing to do their jobs,” Demuth said. “House Republicans be will showing up to work on Monday — it’s time for the Democrats’ walkout to end and for the legislation to get on with its work.”

Meanwhile, Tabke’s GOP opponent, Aaron Paul, announced he would not pursue an appeal after a court ruled Tabke had won his election.

“Even Brad Tabke agrees that the court’s opinion is only advisory, and the legislature still retains its constitutional authority to determine its members,” he said.