Minnesota Supreme Court Cancels January 28th Special Election in District 40B

(KNSI) – The Minnesota GOP won an important case against Governor Tim Walz and Secretary of State Steve Simon on Friday.

The State Supreme Court ruled in the Republicans’ favor regarding the special election in House District 40B to fill a vacant seat after the DFL candidate who won the general election was found not to live there. Walz issued a Writ of Special Election on December 27th, 2024, setting the contest for January 28th.

Republicans argued that the move broke state law by having the race wrap up only two weeks after the legislature had gaveled in for the session. Minnesota Statute reads, “If a vacancy results from a successful election contest, the governor shall issue 22 days after the first day of the legislative session a writ calling for a special election unless the house in which the contest may be tried has passed a resolution which states that it will or will not review the court’s determination of the contest. If the resolution states that the house will not review the court’s determination, the writ shall be issued within five days of the passage of the resolution.”

The court decided that candidate Curtis Johnson’s letter to the governor saying he would not fight to be seated was not enough to override the law’s requirements. Therefore, the Writ of Special Election has been quashed.

The Minnesota Supreme Court further added that Ramsey County’s costs in recording and tallying absentee and early ballots are not enough to change the ruling. No new date has been set for the special election.

House Speaker Lisa Demuth reacted to the decision, “State law is clear about the process and timeline for the Governor to call a special election. I’m pleased the court correctly ruled that the Governor failed the follow the law in his attempt to speed up the special election to help the political fortunes of the Democrat party. We want the residents of 40B to have representation as soon as possible and look forward to the Governor calling a special election pursuant to state law.”

The third-party group, Minnesota Voters Alliance, joined the GOP in challenging the writ.

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