ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Gov. Tim Walz urged lawmakers Thursday to end a power struggle that has disrupted the first week of Minnesota's 2025 legislative session, but expressed support for House Democrats' boycott of the chamber to block Republicans from wielding power.
House Republicans hold a temporary 67-66 majority until a special election to fill a vacant seat on Jan. 28. Democrats, who have refused to attend the session since it opened Tuesday, contend a quorum under the state constitution requires 68 members to be present and that the House cannot conduct any business without a quorum.
“Just work together on a power-sharing agreement,” Walz urged lawmakers as he unveiled his two-year budget proposal. “That’s the way it’s going to end up. And I think that can work out really well.”
House Republicans say they need only 67 members to be present because of the empty seat. In the Democrats' absence, they have elected their top leader as speaker and appointed committee chairs and other officers. The state Supreme Court will hear oral arguments next Thursday on whether the GOP's moves are legal.
Walz said he’s confident the special election in a heavily Democratic district will result in a 67-67 tie in the House, and he urged House Republicans to end the fight now.
“I would encourage them, don’t go down this road,” he told reporters. “You’re not going to win in court. You’re not going to win in a court of public opinion. We got a split Legislature. That is acknowledged. Just go with that. You’re not going to overturn an election.”
The main task of the legislative session is to pass a balanced two-year budget to take effect July 1, and that will require bipartisan cooperation. Both sides agree the House can’t pass bills without 68 votes under their rules, so they will eventually have to find ways to worth together.
The governor's proposed $65.9 billion budget includes a modest cut sales tax cut, from 6.875% to 6.8%, which would mean a 7.5-cent savings on a $100 purchase. The lost revenue would be offset by extending the sales tax to some services that aren't currently taxed, and the closure of various loopholes. His plan would slow the growth of some programs affecting seniors and special education students. It contains measures to combat fraud in government programs, but few new initiatives.
“You’ve got an opportunity here to shrink state spending, to cut taxes, to bring fairness to the system," Walz said. "I’m not adding any additional programs or anything, (I'm) bringing efficiencies to it. This is pretty uncontroversial.”
House GOP leader Lisa Demuth, of Cold Spring, slammed the governor's proposal, saying Republicans won't support any tax increases or cuts affecting seniors in nursing homes, and signaled the GOP would keep fighting.
“I unfortunately have not heard directly from him at all,” Demuth told reporters after a brief Republicans-only floor session Thursday. “If he wanted to encourage the other House members to actually come to work ... it would be much appreciated.”
Demuth and the top House Democrat, Melissa Hortman, of Brooklyn Park, had mostly worked out a power-sharing agreement last month, but it fell apart after a judge ruled that one Democratic member didn't live in the district he won. That decision gave Republicans their one-seat majority.
Hortman on Thursday renewed an offer to Demuth to recognize a Republican majority through Feb. 3, when the original power-sharing agreement would kick back in. The offer requires Republicans to agree not to try to unseat another Democrat who won election by 14 votes.
“The path you have chosen and the situation currently unfolding in the Minnesota House is deeply concerning,” Hortman wrote to Demuth, adding, “we owe a duty to the state to continue to work together to achieve a resolution of our differences.”
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This story has been corrected to show that House Democratic leader Melissa Hortman is from Brooklyn Park.
Steve Karnowski, The Associated Press
