Democrats retain control of Minnesota Senate, House still up for grabs

Balance of power in state legislature still up in the air

Republicans and democrats are each hoping to have a majority in at least one of the chambers in St. Paul.

The balance of power in the Minnesota state legislature is still up in the air, as a few races remain undecided as of Wednesday morning.

In the state senate, the only race was the special election in District 45, which represents the communities around Lake Minnetonka. That race has been called for the DFL, with Ann Johnson Steward receiving 52% of the vote.

That leaves Democrats with a one-seat majority.

Republicans had a chance to take control of the state house, and they needed to pick up at least four seats to do so. As of Wednesday morning, they’ve flipped three seats – in District 18A, 26A, and 7B.

In District 18A, Republican challenger Erica Schwartz defeated incumbent DFLer Jeff Brand for the North Mankato area with 52% of the vote.

Meanwhile, Republican Aaron Repinski will now represent the Winona area after defeating DFL candidate Sarah Kruger by about 1,500 votes. That seat was open after another DFL lawmaker decided to retire.

And in House District 7B, the last seat held by the DFL on Minnesota’s Iron Range, Republican Cal Warwas won with 56% of the vote. The former representative for that seat also retired.

Other races that are very close are House Districts 54A and 3B.

It’s a split between incumbent DFL member Brad Tabke in Shakopee and his republican challenger, Aaron Paul – the difference is just a handful of votes. For 3B, there’s another 50-50 split in the Hermantown area, where incumbent republican Natalie Zeleznikar has a handful more votes than her challenger, Mark Munger of the DFL.

If Republicans lose that seat, they’ll have to make up for that by flipping more seats elsewhere across the state in order to get control of the House.

Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman released the following statement regarding initial election counts:

“In Minnesota, voters turned out in significant numbers to make their voices heard. Based on current results, control of the Minnesota House of Representatives is too close to call. It is important to be patient while we wait for results to be finalized. All eligible voters in Minnesota should have their voices heard and their votes counted.”

5 EYEWITNESS NEWS will continue to watch the races and provide updates as they come in. CLICK HERE for full election results.