Walz, DFL leaders call for Sen. Nicole Mitchell to resign; senator says no plans to step down

By KSTP

DFL Mitchell Latest

With the legislative session now over, leaders of the DFL party are calling for Sen. Nicole Mitchell (DFL-Woodbury) to resign over the burglary charges she’s facing.

This comes after Mitchell was formally charged with first-degree burglary for allegedly breaking into her stepmother’s Detroit Lakes home late last month. A few days later, Republican members of the Minnesota Senate filed an ethics complaint against Mitchell.

A few days later, Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy (DFL-St. Paul) announced Mitchell had been removed from committees and caucus meetings.

The party issued the following statement regarding its decision calling for Mitchell’s resignation:

“The Minnesota DFL believes that all elected officials should be held accountable, including members of our own party. While Sen. Mitchell is entitled to her day in court, her continued refusal to take responsibility for her actions is beneath her office and has become a distraction for her district and the Legislature. Now that her constituents have had full representation through the end of the legislative session, it is time for her to resign to focus on the personal and legal challenges she faces.”
Ken Martin, chairman of the DFL Party

Gov. Tim Walz’s office then confirmed that he agrees with Martin and “believes it would be best for Senator Mitchell to resign to focus on personal matters.”

As previously reported by 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS, Martin has said that if he “was in her shoes, I would probably consider resigning, of course to focus on the legal challenges ahead and my family, but I’m not in her shoes and only Senator Mitchell can make that decision for herself.”

Mitchell has previously said she doesn’t intend to resign over the charge. Her lawyer released a statement Thursday afternoon saying the senator still doesn’t intend to resign.

“Sen. Mitchell has heard from many in her community who support her work and believe in her right to due process under law. Therefore, until her criminal case is fully and finally adjudicated, Sen. Mitchell will continue to serve her constituents as the duly elected state senator from District 47,” the statement says in part.

On Thursday, Republicans also issued a statement regarding Martin’s call for Mitchell’s resignation:

“Without new evidence or information in the accusations against Sen. Mitchell, this statement from DFL Chair Ken Martin is a clear admission Democrats were so desperate to pass their highly partisan agenda they were willing to use votes of an alleged burglar to do it. Democrats abused their political majority and embraced Sen. Mitchell because it served their political purpose instead of working in a bipartisan way for Minnesotans. Anyone paying attention could see this coming – now that they no longer need her vote, they are ready to cast her aside. This shameless pursuit of political power is not what Minnesotans deserve from their elected leaders.”
Mark Johnson (R-East Grand Forks), Sen. Minority Leader

Republican members of the Senate had made a motion to have senators vote to ask Mitchell to resign. However, Democrats voted against the motion, winning by a vote of 34-33. Mitchell voted with the majority against the motion.

Earlier this month, an ethics panel – made of two Republicans and two Democrats – decided to hold off on an investigation and to let the court case play out.

According to the criminal complaint, Mitchell said she broke into her stepmother’s home because her father had recently passed away and she wanted to get items of sentimental value, including his ashes.

However, Republican lawmakers on the committee pointed out the differences between what she told police and the Facebook statement she made after the fact in which she said she was checking on a family member whose health is declining due to Alzheimer’s disease.

Both DFL members of the committee, Sens. Bobby Joe Champion and Mary Kunesh, supported waiting until after the criminal case had finished, or at least until after Mitchell’s next court date, which is currently scheduled for June 10. The two Republicans on the committee, Miller and Sen. Andrew Mathews, moved there is probable cause and pushed to continue the investigation.

After a brief closed-door meeting, the committee came back and voted to continue the proceedings on June 12. They also agreed to reconvene if anything substantial came up between now and then.