If history is any guide, and it usually is fairly reliable, the 2025 session of the Minnesota Legislature will likely be contentious and controversial.

That’s based on history from last year’s chaotic end to the session when one party was in control of the House, Senate, and the governor’s office… and the end of the 1979 session when Republicans and Democrats had to share power because they were deadlocked 67-67.

“We were able to work it out, but it was not easy,” says Lyndon Carlson, a former DFL House member who served 48 years, longer than any other member in state history. He was a relatively new state representative when the 1978 election resulted in an even split.

The same scenario is about to play out in 2025 if the results of two legislative races stay the same after recounts.

Carlson says the unprecedented tie in the Minnesota House back in 1978 resulted in several weeks of tough negotiations to determine how Democrats and Republicans would share power. “That took several weeks basically from the time of the election in early November until well into December before we were able to resolve the issues between the two caucuses on how to share power,” Carlson told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS on Wednesday.

He says the two sides ultimately agreed to elect a Republican to be House Speaker while Democrats were given control of the powerful House Rules Committee, which basically controlled the agenda of the House.

Fast forward to 2025, and leaders of the Minnesota House Republican and DFL caucuses pledged to reach compromises on a power-sharing agreement.

“This is the opportunity for us to work together with our colleagues, the Democrats across the aisle and find ways to best serve Minnesotans,” House Republican leader Rep. Lisa Demuth said at a State Capitol news conference.

Minutes later, House DFL leaders also pledged cooperation. “We would prefer to have the majority and I know the Republicans would prefer to have the majority, but it is a golden opportunity to show people that we can get along and we can get things done,” said DFL House Speaker Melissa Hortman.

Carleton College political analyst Steven Schier says he’s skeptical it will be smooth sailing. “These two parties are very polarized and do not have good working relations between each other and how they could possibly work out a mutually productive governing arrangement remains to be seen,” he says.

If you’re wondering how the 1979 power-sharing agreement worked out, you can probably guess. They got along for the most part during the session, but when key budget decisions had to be made there was chaos in the final days of the session. That included the final day of the session when several DFL members walked off the House floor rather than vote for three major budget bills. The session adjourned without a completed budget, so a one-day special session had to be held later in May to complete their work.

No matter the disagreements, the Minnesota Constitution requires the legislature to pass a balanced budget every two years.

The 2025 session begins on January 14.