For the first time in state history, the Minnesota Legislature could find itself in a rare “double tie,” a possibility hinging on a state senator who has been called to resign.
The Minnesota House recently saw a 67-67 split in the general election for the first time since 1979. Now, the state Senate could face a similar fate, with a 33-33 tie, depending on whether Sen. Nicole Mitchell, DFL-Woodbury, resigns following her burglary arrest in April.
Mitchell, who faces a first-degree felony burglary charge for allegedly breaking into her stepmother’s home in Detroit Lakes, said she was retrieving items belonging to her late father, who died in 2022.
Mitchell pleaded not guilty to the charge in August and has stated that she has no plans to resign.
Potential for Senate tie
If Mitchell does resign or is expelled during the legislative session, the Senate would temporarily fall into a 33-33 tie, creating a Legislative “double tie” never before seen in Minnesota.
Sen. Mark Johnson, R-East Grand Forks, said he suspects Mitchell’s case will be pushed well into the session, which starts Jan. 14, but that he finds the possibility “fascinating.”
“That might be a possibility, but the reality is, if she does, at some point during the session, resign, what we’re going to end up with is something very similar to the House, which, right now we’re already kind of primed for a legislative body to be negotiating bipartisan bills,” Johnson said.
Johnson said Mitchell’s case has been continuously pushed out from its original date in June.
“For her, it’s been a strategy to delay this,“ he said. “Senator Mitchell’s court case, it’s been delayed a number of times. So it should have been back. I think the initial date was back in June … Now we’re seeing it out to January.”
David Schultz, professor of political science at Hamline University, said he anticipates a similar scenario as Johnson — that Mitchell’s case will be pushed out past the session so the DFL can hold its majority — but that the double-tie possibility would be like “chaining two angry animals together.”
“From a rational perspective, with a double tie, it would make sense for them to say, ‘You’ve got to cooperate,’ but as much as that would make sense, politics is not necessarily about what makes sense,” Schultz said. “And what I suspect might happen is that each of the parties has all types of incentives from their voters, their donors, their constituents, to keep fighting. Each side says, ‘Well, heck, we’re going to stick to our guns, because we don’t trust the other side to do so.’ ”
Some DFL members, including Gov. Tim Walz and DFL Chair Ken Martin , have openly called for Mitchell to resign.
It’s also possible that Mitchell could be forced to vacate her seat, even if she does not step down voluntarily. The Senate could hold a vote to expel her, which would require a two-thirds supermajority to pass.
While ties have occurred in both the Minnesota House and Senate in the past, this would be the first time a tie has occurred in both chambers simultaneously. Additionally, a tie in the Senate has never occurred during the session itself, according to the Legislative Reference Library.
If a tie occurred during the session, Minnesota state law dictates that the governor call for a special election within five days of the vacancy opening, and that the election be held within 35 days of the call.
Meaning the Legislature could be functioning in a double tie for up to a month.
Healing opportunity or political games?
When the burglary charge against Mitchell was reported during the 2024 session, Republicans spent up to six hours on the floor discussing Mitchell’s case according to Senate DFL records.
Schultz said that he worries about the chamber’s productivity being affected as long as Mitchell’s case is still pending.
“The Senate productivity went down dramatically,” Schultz said of last session. “We could all see that, because they were just consumed by Mitchell.”
Moving forward, Majority Leader Sen. Erin Murphy said she wants Republicans to stop “playing political games” with Mitchell’s case.
“I have had conversations with Senator Mitchell about her situation, as have other members. I am not going to air those discussions out in the press,” Murphy said. “Senator Mitchell has options going forward in her legal case and her political career, and it is my job in the majority to make plans for all possible outcomes. We have done that, and I am confident we can continue to make early and significant progress — but only if Republicans can agree to stop playing political games with her case so we can get to work, together, for the people of Minnesota.”
Johnson said that the Senate being in a similar situation to the House may create opportunity for bipartisan discussions and cooperation from both parties on things like budget bills.
“I honestly think it would be a pretty healthy thing, given the way that last session ended in the acrimony that was the last few minutes of the session,” he said. “It’d be a good healing opportunity for not only the Legislature but for the state to watch legislators work in a bipartisan manner.”
Schultz said he suspects the tie would limit how much legislation successfully moves through the chambers.
“I would call it kind of a caretaker government, if it’s a double tie, it would be that that the Democrats and Republicans probably only agree to what is the absolute bare minimum that needs to be agreed to, and beyond that, nothing else happens,” he said.
Accountability and public image
Johnson expressed concern that Mitchell’s continued presence in the Senate could harm the institution’s credibility.
“Here we got somebody with serious felony-level criminal charges hanging over their heads, and they’re sitting there making or voting on serious legislation,” Johnson said. “Regardless of what happens on the criminal side of things, are our members comfortable with having Senator Mitchell there, and knowing what has happened, really reflect that image to the general public?”
Minnesota law does not explicitly prohibit elected officials with criminal charges to step down, or pause their duties as a lawmaker, Johnson pointed out.
“For our caucus, it felt very strongly that this needed to be addressed, and Democrats continued to duck, even though behind the scenes, a number of them did agree that, look, she should be held accountable,” he said.
Mitchell’s next court hearing is scheduled for Jan. 27.
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