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Minnesota House Democrats are ready to get to work to build a future where everyone can get ahead, not just the wealthy and powerful. But to do that, we need to find a way to govern together with Republicans as voters delivered this last election.
A 67-67 tie in the 134-member Minnesota House is extremely rare, and it should be a moment to show Minnesotans that we can govern together on a bipartisan basis. For two months Republicans and Democrats in the Minnesota House agreed on that premise and negotiated a power-sharing agreement. Unfortunately, Republicans have now decided to walk away from negotiations and are instead attempting to engage in an illegitimate power grab and unseat a duly elected DFL state representative. That’s why House Democrats are calling on Republicans to sign a power-sharing agreement that honors the will of the voters.
Republicans have confirmed they plan to try to use a two-week, one-seat advantage to try to seize control of the House for the next two years, even though Minnesotans voted for equal numbers of DFL and Republican state representatives. A majority of 68 members is required to conduct business in the Minnesota House — including passing legislation — which means the 67-member Republican caucus has no ability to conduct business without collaboration with House Democrats.
Republicans also made clear that they would use their temporary one-vote advantage to unseat a duly elected DFL state representative and order a special election regardless of the fact he won, disenfranchising 21,980 voters who cast their ballots in the November election. It would be outrageous not to seat a member who won an election and the first of its kind of abuse of power in Minnesota’s history.
Minnesotans expect their elected officials to honor the will and the decisions of the voters. We have no interest in spending January locked in partisan warfare with House Republicans, but we do not intend to allow them to pretend that 67 votes is a majority and engage in an illegitimate power grab that ignores the will of the voters.
Instead of partisan fights and parliamentary tactics, Democrats want to keep working to build a future where everyone can get ahead, not just the rich and powerful. In Minnesota, working hard and playing by the rules should mean that your family can afford a home, child care and health care when you need it, but too many Minnesotans feel the American dream slipping away. Everyone has a story of being nickel and dimed — overcharged and underpaid — at the cash register, hospital, online checkout, in our paychecks and pretty much everywhere in our economy. We must take action to create an economy where workers and families have a real chance to succeed, instead of one rigged to benefit powerful corporations and wealthy interests.
