Special election in pivotal Minnesota House race slated for Tuesday

A special election for a Minnesota House seat on Tuesday will determine who represents an east metro suburban district and possibly alter the balance of power at the Capitol.

If Democrat David Gottfried wins the reliably blue District 40B seat, which covers Roseville and Shoreview, the House will be tied 67-67. A win by Republican Paul Wikstrom would give the House GOP a 68-66 majority.

Regardless of the result of the election, Hamline University political science professor David Schultz said he expects partisan gridlock at the Capitol to continue. Everything will be subject to bipartisan negotiation if the House is brought to a tie, as 68 votes are needed to pass bills. And if Republicans win that majority, deals would still need to be made with the DFL-led Senate.

“Major bills such as the budget will be difficult compromises within the House and then with the Senate and the governor,” Schultz said.

The initial winner of the District 40B seat was DFLer Curtis Johnson. But a judge later found Johnson ineligible to serve because he failed to meet the state’s residency requirement, ultimately prompting Tuesday’s special election between Gottfried and Wikstrom.

The ruling temporarily shifted a 67-67 split in the chamber to a 67-66 advantage for Republicans, who abandoned power-sharing negotiations with Democrats and attempted to take control of the chamber and committees when the legislative session began in January.

Democrats boycotted the session for three weeks to prevent Republicans from getting a quorum, the number of members needed to conduct business. In January, the state Supreme Court confirmed that 68 votes are needed to do any business in the House.

Gottfried, a Shoreview resident who grew up in Roseville, said in an email to the Minnesota Star Tribune last month that he’s running because he sees “a need for governance that centers shared values and practical policy.”

He said he’s most passionate about lowering the cost of prescriptions, housing and childcare, and will work to increase wages and access to affordable health care.

Gottfried works at a local law firm as a pro bono specialist.

Wikstrom, a longtime Shoreview resident who has had an engineering and management career in the aerospace and medical device industries, said in a statement to the Star Tribune that he’s concerned about high taxes and the state budget, and supports efforts to rein in crime and fraud in state government.

A recent state budget forecast predicts a nearly $6 billion deficit in coming years that “deepens my concern about state spending. We need to spend responsibly and maintain a reserve for future deficits,” he said.

If Republicans win the seat, Schultz predicts they may seek to repeal laws that were passed by the DFL trifecta over the past two years, “setting up a fight with the Senate and [DFL Gov. Tim Walz].” Should that occur, the outcome will be hard to predict, he said.

Schultz also pointed out that the GOP has vastly different budget priorities than the Senate and Walz.

If both parties fail to work together to craft a budget by the time the Legislature adjourns May 19, it could result in a special session and perhaps a government shutdown, he said.

Ryan Faircloth of the Minnesota Star Tribune contributed to this report.