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Minnesota state legislative special elections, 2026

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2026 State Legislative
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As of November, two special elections have been called to fill vacant seats in the Minnesota State Legislature.

Click here to read more about the special elections.

House special elections called:

How vacancies are filled in Minnesota


Vacancies in the Minnesota State Legislature are filled through election. If there are more than 150 days before the next state general election, and the legislature will not be in session before the results are canvassed, then any vacancy is filled at the next state general election.[1][2]

If the vacancy happens during the legislative session, the governor has five days to issue a writ calling for a special election. The election must take place no more than 35 days after the issuance of the writ. If the legislature is out of session and there are fewer than 150 days before the next state general election, the governor must call for a special election so the winner of the election can take office when the legislature reconvenes.[2][3]

DocumentIcon.jpg See sources: Minnesota Cons. Art. 4, § 4 and Minnesota Stat. § 204D.19


About the legislature

The Minnesota Legislature is the state legislature of Minnesota. It is a bicameral legislature, consisting of the lower Minnesota House of Representatives and the Minnesota State Senate.

The boxes below show the partisan composition of both chambers directly before and after the most recent general elections prior to 2026. For the most up-to-date numbers on partisan composition in this legislature, see here (Senate) and here (House).

Minnesota House of Representatives
Party As of November 5, 2024 After November 6, 2024
     Democratic Party 68 66
     Republican Party 64 67
     Vacancy 2 1
Total 134 134

Special elections

Click [show] to the right of the district name for more information:

January 27, 2026

Historical data

There were 1,007 state legislative special elections that took place from 2010 to 2024. Minnesota held 24 special elections during the same time period. The largest number of special elections in Minnesota took place in 2011 when four special elections were held.

The table below details how many state legislative special elections were held in a state in a given year.

Special elections throughout the country

See also: State legislative special elections, 2026

As of November 2025, 19 state legislative special elections have been scheduled for 2026 in 11 states. Between 2011 and 2024, an average of 70 special elections took place each year.

Breakdown of 2026 special elections

In 2026, special elections for state legislative positions are being held for the following reasons:

  • 7 due to appointment, election, or the seeking of election to another position
  • 10 due to resignation
  • 2 due to the death of the incumbent

Impact of special elections on partisan composition

The partisan breakdown for the special elections is as follows:

As of November 23rd, 2025, Republicans controlled 55.32% of all state legislative seats nationally, while Democrats held 43.54%. Republicans held a majority in 57 chambers, and Democrats held the majority in 39 chambers. Two chambers (Alaska House and Alaska Senate) were organized under multipartisan, power-sharing coalitions. One chamber (Minnesota House of Representatives) was split evenly between both parties.

Partisan balance of all 7,386 state legislative seats
Legislative chamber Democratic Party Republican Party Grey.png Other Vacant
State senates 829 1,118 6 20
State houses 2,387 2,968 20 38
Total: 3,216

4,086

26

58


The table below details how many seats changed parties as the result of a special election in 2026. The number on the left reflects how many vacant seats were originally held by each party, while the number on the right shows how many vacant seats each party won in the special elections.

Note: This table reflects information for elections that have been held and not the total number of vacant seats.

Partisan Change from Special Elections (2026)
Party As of Special Election After Special Election
     Democratic Party 8 0
     Republican Party 11 0
     Independent 0 0
Total 19 0

Flipped seats

In 2026, as of November, no seats flipped as a result of state legislative special elections.


See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Minnesota Revisor of Statutes, "Constitution of the State of Minnesota," accessed February 12, 2021 (Article 4, Section 4)
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Minnesota Revisor of Statutes, "2020 Minnesota Statutes," accessed February 12, 2021 (Statute 204D.19 (1)-(3))
  3. ↑ Minnesota Revisor of Statutes, "2020 Minnesota Statutes," accessed February 12, 2021 (Statute 204B.13)
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon, "House Districts 47A and 64A Special Elections," accessed November 20, 2025
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon, "House Districts 47A and 64A Special Elections," accessed November 20, 2025
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