ST. PAUL, Minn. —Lost in the drama of an unprecedented presidential race and buried beneath the races for U.S. Congress are contests where many people could not identify who the candidates were.
This November, the entire 134-member House of Representatives is on the ballot. Meanwhile, the Senate and the governor’s race aren’t on the ballot until 2026.
Right now, the DFL has complete control of state government. Democrats want to keep it that way, but Republicans hope to flip the House of Representatives.
If you’re wondering why control of the Minnesota House of Representatives matters, think about the 2023 legislative session. That’s when the DFL trifecta passed everything frompaid family and sick leave,legalize marijuana,codifying abortion rights,Driver’s licenses for undocumented persons,free tuition for people with a low income,restored voting rightsfor criminals,free school mealsfor all students,gun controlincluding a “red flag” law and background checks for private gun sales and more.
For Democrats, it was a progressive wish list delivered. For Governor Tim Walz, it was a springboard to a vice presidential nomination. But for Republicans, it was a conservative government nightmare come to life.
The DFL currently holds a four-seat majority in the House of Representatives, a narrow margin thatRepublicans are working feverishly to change the situationand Democrats like House Majority Leader Jamie Long are fighting just as hard to keep that position.
“Which I think is two votes in the House. And that’s what it is, it’s a slim majority and we’re not going to take it for granted. We’re going to fight hard to make sure we keep it,” Long said.
Republicans believe the majority is within their grasp. They point to districts like 26A in Winona, where DFL Rep. Gene Pelowski is retiring after nearly 40 years of service. Pelowski is a Democrat, but the Winona area is solidly conservative country.
“We know we had about four seats that we lost by 1,500 votes or less. So when we look at the numbers from last time, we’re certainly targeting different districts based on those numbers,” said House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth. “We were already targeting Rep. Pelowski’s district in Winona before he announced his retirement.”
With lawmakers stepping down comes the opportunity for new candidates to fill those empty seats. Those candidates will have to campaign in districts where every vote counts, and name recognition counts even more.
“You’re going to see a lot of people who are really well-known in their communities. And I think that’s the difference. You know, most people have never met Kamala Harris. Most people have never met, you know, these national figures. But most people have met these people who are running for local office,” said Democratic strategist Abou Amara. “And some of these high-caliber candidates, you really want them to be connected to their communities so that when they go out and vote, people are going to say, ‘You know what? I recognize that name. I know that guy,’ and hopefully that can sink in and make a difference.”
As all eyes turn to the Minnesota House of Representatives runoffs, Republican strategist Amy Koch says to keep an eye on the Senate, especially if there is a special election. This would be the case if theHarris-Walz ticket would winin november.
The state constitution says that in the event of a vacancy, Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan would become governor, and the state Senate President, Senator Bobby Joe Champion, would be promoted to lieutenant governor.
If that were the case, the Senate would be split 33-33 at the start of the January session and special elections would have to be held at the same time.
Esmé Murphy
