After failing to reach a power-sharing agreement with Democratic-Farmer-Labor lawmakers, Minnesota House Republicans moved Tuesday to elect their own House speaker without the other party present.

Calling the move an “unlawful sham,” DFLers didn’t show up at the Capitol for the first day of the 2025 session.

DFLers argue the House couldn’t move forward with business unless there were 68 members present — a majority of the total 134 seats — while Republicans say they just needed the most members — 67 of 133 current sitting members.

Operating on that interpretation, they elected their caucus leader, Rep. Lisa Demuth, R-Cold Spring, soon after DFL Secretary of State Steve Simon had moved to adjourn the House, which he ruled lacked a quorum. Republicans in turn described that ruling as a “sham.”

What happens next in the House?

Republicans moving forward without the DFL puts the state in uncharted legal territory, and the matter likely will end up before the Minnesota Supreme Court. Simon, a DFLer, said he will file a petition to challenge Republican actions.

Also to be resolved — GOP leaders are considering preventing a Shakopee DFL House lawmaker from being seated after they lost an election challenge over his victory, something Democrats say is an abuse of power.

And, a special election to fill a Roseville House seat is currently the target of a legal challenge by the state GOP who argue over the timing of the special election — to take place Jan. 28 — set by Gov. Tim Walz.

Shakopee legislative race decision

Earlier Tuesday, a Shakopee judge ruled that Democratic Rep. Brad Tabke is eligible to take seat 54A in the House despite 20 missing ballots in that race. Tabke, DFL-Shakopee, issued a statement calling on Demuth to respect the judge’s decision.

In a statement on the Shakopee ruling, Demuth said a vote to deny Tabke his seat remains on the table as the Minnesota Constitution says: “Each house shall be the judge of the election returns and eligibility of its own members.”

Melissa Hortman, the DFL leader, signaled her caucus will continue to deny the House GOP a quorum.

A question of what makes a quorum

Last year’s election delivered a tied House with 67 Republicans and 67 Democrats, but after a DFLer got disqualified over residency issues, Republicans ended up with a one-seat majority for the time being.

DFLers say their absence denies the House the quorum of 68 members needed to conduct business, per their interpretation of the state Constitution. However, that interpretation is disputed by Republicans. They say a majority means a majority of elected members, not total seats in the House. And others, including the House Clerk’s Office, have said a majority of 133 is enough to take votes.

DFLers had most of their members sworn in on Sunday at a closed ceremony, meaning they didn’t have to show up on the first day. Typically, members swear in at noon on the first day of session, something noted in the state Constitution, and Republicans decried the move as “illegitimate.”

Senate power-sharing

Meanwhile, the state Senate operated more smoothly on its opening day Tuesday.

DFL and Republican caucuses in the Senate, which is temporarily tied 33-33 following the death of Sen. Kari Dziedzic in late December, have reached a power-sharing agreement.

Under the agreement, they elected Sen. Bobby Joe Champion, DFL-Minneapolis, and Sen. Jeremy Miller, R-Winona, as “co-presiding officers.” They also split Senate committee seats between the parties and appointed co-chairs.

Democrats are expected to reclaim a majority in the Senate in a few weeks. A primary election in the DFL-dominated district occurred on Tuesday and the special election is on Jan. 28.

The makeup of the Senate also could be affected by the outcome and timing of the felony burglary trial of Sen. Nicole Mitchell, a Woodbury DFLer accused of breaking into her stepmother’s Detroit Lakes home last April.