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2021 Minnesota legislative session

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2021 Minnesota legislative session
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General information
Session start:    January 5, 2021

Session end:    May 17, 2021

Leadership
Senate President
David Tomassoni (I)

House Speaker
Melissa Hortman (D)
Majority Leader
Senate: Paul Gazelka (R)
House: Ryan Winkler (D)
Minority Leader
Senate: Susan Kent (D)
House: Kurt Daudt (R)

Elections
Next Election:    November 8, 2022

Last Election:    November 3, 2020

Previous legislative sessions
2020 • 2019 • 2018
Other 2021 legislative sessions

In 2021, the Minnesota State Legislature was scheduled to convene on January 5 and adjourn on May 17.

The legislators serving in this session took office following the 2020 elections. Republicans won a 34-31 majority (with two independents) in the Senate and Democrats won a 70-64 majority in the House. Democrats also controlled the governorship, creating a divided government. At the start of the 2021 session, Minnesota was one of 28 state legislatures where neither party had a veto-proof supermajority in both chambers.

The Minnesota State Legislature is responsible for redistricting following each census. Legislators were expected to address redistricting as part of the 2021 legislative session. As of the 2020 Census, Minnesota was one of 37 states where legislators were responsible for redistricting.

At the beginning of the 2021 legislative session:
  • Republicans held a majority in the Minnesota state Senate and Democrats held a majority in the state House.
  • Minnesota was one of 12 divided governments.
  • Minnesota's governor was Democrat Tim Walz.

    • Leadership in 2021

    Minnesota State Senate

    Republicans elect Democratic president, pair of Democrats leave party caucus

    On November 12, 2020, the Senate voted 63-4 to make Sen. David Tomassoni (I) the Senate President. Majority Leader Paul Gazelka, (R) told Minnesota Public Radio that the appointment was made in case President-elect Joe Biden (D) was to appoint U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D) to his cabinet. If Klobuchar were to leave the Senate, state political observers expect Gov. Tim Walz (D) to nominate Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan (D). Following Flanagan's appointment, the Senate President would automatically assume the office of lieutenant governor.[1]

    Republicans won a one-seat majority in the 2020 elections. In a normal scenario where the majority party selects one of its members to be Senate President, the above chain of succession would produce a deadlock in the chamber and the potential for a Democratic candidate to win the seat in a special election, flipping the chamber's majority.

    “We’re going to take preemptive steps to make sure we don’t have to go through that fiasco again,” Gazelka told MPR, referring to events triggered by the 2018 resignation of U.S. Sen. Al Franken (D). Following Franken's resignation, Gov. Mark Dayton (D) appointed Lt. Gov. Tina Smith (D) to the seat, prompting Senate President Michelle Fischbach's (R) succession to lieutenant governor. Fischbach initially refused to take the new role and only did so after a court ruled she had to.[1]

    On November 18, 2020, Tomassoni and Sen. Thomas Bakk (I) announced the formation of the Independent Caucus. The pair said that the move would allow them to chair committees and better serve their districts along with the chamber's Republican majority. According to KSTP, Gazelka was expected to appoint each as a committee chair. Bakk previously served as the leader of the DFL caucus from 2012 to 2020.[2]

    In a statement, Bakk said: "I'm very disappointed by the extreme partisanship going on nationally and right here in Minnesota. Both political parties are to blame. The constant negative and sharp rhetoric is undermining voters' confidence in our public institutions. It doesn't have to stay this way . . . David and I have always voted our districts. We have always represented our districts as bipartisan and moderate members of the legislature. Forming this new caucus is just a natural progression of aligning more with moderate than the far right or left."[2]

    As a result of the new caucus, Republicans held a 34-31 edge over Democrats when the legislature convened on January 4, 2021. KSTP reported that Bakk and Tomassoni were likely to caucus with the Republicans as a result of their committee chair positions.[2]

    Minnesota House of Representatives

    Partisan control in 2021

    See also: State government trifectas

    Minnesota was one of 12 divided governments at the start of 2021 legislative sessions. A state government trifecta occurs when one political party holds the governor's office, a majority in the state Senate, and a majority in the state House. For more information about state government trifectas, click here.

    Minnesota was also one of 28 state legislatures where neither party had a veto-proof supermajority in both chambers. Veto overrides occur when a legislature votes to reverse a veto issued by an executive such as a governor or the president. If one party has a majority in a state legislature that is large enough to override a gubernatorial veto without any votes from members of the minority party, it is called a veto-proof majority or, sometimes, a supermajority. To read more about veto-proof supermajorities in state legislatures, click here.

    The following tables show the partisan breakdown of the Minnesota State Legislature in the 2021 legislative session.

    Minnesota State Senate

    Party As of January 2021
         Democratic Party 31
         Republican Party 34
         Independent 2
    Total 67

    Minnesota House of Representatives

    Party As of January 2021
         Democratic Party 70
         Republican Party 64
    Total 134

    Regular session

    The following widget shows up to 25 pieces of legislation in the 2021 legislative session that most recently passed both chambers of the legislature, were signed by the governor, or were approved by the legislature in a veto override. If no bills are displayed below, no legislation met these criteria in 2021. This information is provided by BillTrack50.

    Redistricting

    See also: Redistricting in Minnesota after the 2020 census

    Redistricting is the process of enacting new district boundaries for elected offices, particularly for offices in the U.S. House of Representatives and state legislatures.

    To learn more about the redistricting process in Minnesota after the 2020 census, click here.

    Standing legislative committees

    See also: Standing committee and List of committees in Minnesota state government


    A standing committee of a state legislature is a committee that exists on a more-or-less permanent basis, from legislative session to session, that considers and refines legislative bills that fall under the committee's subject matter.

    At the beginning of the 2021 legislative session, there were 37 standing committees' in Minnesota's state government, including 16 state Senate committees and 21 state House committees.

    Senate committees

    House committees

    Legislatively referred constitutional amendments

    In every state but Delaware, voter approval is required to enact a constitutional amendment. In each state, the legislature has a process for referring constitutional amendments before voters. In 18 states, initiated constitutional amendments can be put on the ballot through a signature petition drive. There are also many other types of statewide measures.

    The methods by which the Minnesota Constitution can be amended:

    See also: Article IX of the Minnesota Constitution and Laws governing ballot measures in Minnesota

    The Minnesota Constitution provides two mechanisms for amending the state's constitution— a legislative process and a state constitutional convention. Ratification of amendments proposed by a convention require a 60% supermajority of those voting on the amendment question, while an amendment proposed by the legislature requires a simple majority (50%+1) of those voting in the election.[3]

    Legislature

    See also: Legislatively referred constitutional amendment

    A simple majority vote is required during one legislative session for the Minnesota State Legislature to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 68 votes in the Minnesota House of Representatives and 34 votes in the Minnesota State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.

    Ratifying an amendment requires a 'Yes' vote from a simple majority of all voters casting a ballot in the election, rather than a simple majority of those voting on the question.

    Convention

    See also: Convention-referred constitutional amendment

    According to Section 3 of Article IX of the Minnesota Constitution, a two-thirds (66.67%) vote in each chamber during one legislative session is required to send a constitutional convention question to voters. A simple majority vote by the electorate is required to call the convention. Any proposed amendments approved by the convention require a 60% vote of the electorate to be ratified.


    Historical partisan control

    The table below depicts the historical trifecta status of Minnesota.

    Minnesota Party Control: 1992-2024
    Four years of Democratic trifectas  •  No Republican trifectas
    Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

    Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
    Governor R R R R R R R I I I I R R R R R R R R D D D D D D D D D D D D D D
    Senate D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D R R D D D D R R R R R R D D
    House D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R D D D D R R D D R R R R D D D D D D

    Historical Senate control

    Between 1992 and 2010, the Minnesota State Senate was controlled by Democrats. Partisan control of the chamber fluctuated between the Democratic and Republican parties between 2010 and 2012. Since the 2016 elections, Republicans have controlled the chamber. The table below shows the partisan history of the Minnesota State Senate following every general election from 1992 to 2020. All data from 2006 or earlier comes from Michael Dubin's Party Affiliations in the State Legislatures (McFarland Press, 2007). Data after 2006 was compiled by Ballotpedia staff.

    Minnesota State Senate election results: 1992-2020

    Party 92 96 00 02 06 10 12 16 20
    Democrats 45 42 39 35 44 30 39 33 31
    Republicans 22 25 27 31 23 37 28 34 34
    Other 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 2

    Between 1992 and 2020, majority control of the state Senate changed three times. Democrats controlled the chamber from 1973 until the 2010 elections.[4] In the 2010 elections, Republicans picked up 16 seats and held a 37-30 majority. That Republican majority held until the 2012 elections, when Democrats gained nine seats. Democrats held that majority until the 2016 elections, when Republicans retook control of the chamber. In the 2016 elections, Democrats went from having a 39-28 majority to a 33-34 minority.

    Democrats went from having a 23-seat advantage following the 1992 elections to being at a three-seat disadvantage after the 2020 elections. The last time that Democrats or Republicans held the 45 seats required to override a gubernatorial veto was after the 1992 elections. Democrats lost that veto-proof majority in a special election in December 1994.[4]

    Historical House control

    Between 1992 and 2020, partisan control of the Minnesota House of Representatives fluctuated between the Democratic and Republican parties. Democrats regained control of the chamber after the 2018 elections. The table below shows the partisan history of the Minnesota House of Representatives following every general election from 1992 to 2020. All data from 2006 or earlier comes from Michael Dubin's Party Affiliations in the State Legislatures (McFarland Press, 2007). Data after 2006 was compiled by Ballotpedia staff.

    Minnesota House of Representatives election results: 1992-2020

    Year '92 '94 '96 '98 '00 '02 '04 '06 '08 '10 '12 '14 '16 '18 '20
    Democrats 87 71 70 63 65 52 66 85 87 62 73 62 57 75 70
    Republicans 47 63 64 71 69 82 68 49 47 72 61 72 77 59 64

    Between 1992 and 2020, majority control of the state House changed seven times. Democrats controlled the chamber from 1987 until the 1998 election.[5] In 1998, Republicans picked up seven seats in the election. That Republican majority held until the 2006 elections, when Democrats gained 19 seats. The chamber returned to a Republican majority in 2010 after Republicans picked up 25 seats. Democrats regained control of the chamber in the 2012 elections when the party picked up 11 seats. Democrats held that majority until the 2014 elections when Republicans retook control of the chamber. In the 2014 elections, Democrats went from having a 73-61 majority to a 62-72 minority. Republicans increased their majority in the 2016 elections from 73-61 to 77-57 but lost their gains in the 2018 elections as a 75-59 Democratic majority regained control.

    Democrats went from having a 40-seat advantage following the 1992 elections to holding a 6-seat advantage after the 2020 elections. From 1992 to 2020, neither Democrats nor Republicans held more than the 90 seats required to override a gubernatorial veto.

    See also

    Elections Minnesota State Government State Legislatures State Politics
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    External links

    Footnotes

    1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Twin Cities Pioneer Press, "Anticipating Biden election fallout, Republicans tap DFLer as Minnesota Senate president," November 12, 2020
    2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 KSTP, "Longtime Minnesota senators quit DFL caucus to form Independent Caucus," November 18, 2020
    3. ↑ The Pink Ballot Statute, 204D.15
    4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Minnesota State Legislature, "Party Control of the Minnesota Senate, 1951-present," accessed February 15, 2021
    5. ↑ Minnesota State Legislature, "Party Control of the Minnesota House of Representatives, 1951-present," accessed February 12, 2021
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