In a letter to members of the Minnesota House on Friday, Jan. 10, Secretary of State Steve Simon said 68 members are needed to conduct House business when the session starts Jan. 14. The letter means that House Republicans, even with a one-vote majority of 67-66, will need Democrats present to conduct business on Day 1 of the session. Simon’s opinion comes while Democrats are threatening a no-show if Republicans do not agree to a power-sharing agreement. “Minnesota House Democrats call upon Republicans to return to the negotiating table,” said Leader Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park. “Talk of ignoring the Secretary of State’s legal authority to call the House to order on the first day of session is irresponsible. Without Democrats, Republican House members are not lawfully entitled to conduct business in the State Capitol, and the Secretary of State is duty-bound to adjourn the session in the absence of a quorum.” One of Simon’s roles as secretary of state is to preside over the Minnesota House on the first day of the session and determine if a quorum is present, according to Minnesota law. Simon said his determination of whether 67 or 68 members present constitutes a quorum came after “extensive research.” “I conclude that the Constitution and state statute define the majority needed for a quorum in the House of Representatives as 68 members,” he said. “If there are not 68 members present, I have no authority to take any further action and will adjourn.” Jan. 10, 2025 letter to Reps. Lisa Demuth and Melissa Hortman: Despite the decision from Simon, Leader Lisa Demuth, R-Cold Spring, said this is an “interpretation” of the law and an act of Simon “wielding unprecedented power.” “In conversations with House GOP leaders, Secretary Simon indicated that he feels justified in wielding unprecedented power to silence the voice of all sworn-in House members in the absence of his interpretation of a quorum,” Demuth said. “Republicans were told that they may not even be recognized on the House Floor for questions about the process happening that day. To this point, we have not been given any legal justification that he’s basing his interpretation on, and House Republicans believe that his intent to use his ceremonial position as temporary presiding officer to silence sitting legislators is an overreach of epic proportions,” she said. The one-seat majority for Republicans came after a judge ruled to unseat DFL Rep.-elect Curtis Johnson, of Roseville. Democrats are arguing that since this seat is likely to remain blue, as Johnson won 65% of the district’s vote in November, a power-sharing agreement will become necessary again after the Jan. 28 special election to fill the vacant seat. “My legal conclusion is based only on a careful review of the state constitution and laws — not on political considerations of any kind,” Simon said in the Friday letter. “As Secretary of State, I am regularly responsible for making independent judgment calls on the law — and sometimes that means disappointing partisans on all sides who want a certain political outcome.” Simon’s full letter and analysis on the quorum question can be read on the Secretary of State’s website. The Minnesota Legislature convenes Tuesday, Jan. 14. Related Articles Politics | Economists Are in the Wilderness. Can They Find a Way Back to Influence? Politics | Don’t the lives of women and girls matter? Politics | America’s 250th birthday prompts rethinking of historical markers Politics | Nicole Mitchell seeks to postpone burglary trial till after Legislature’s adjournment Politics | Supreme Court to weigh reinstating Obamacare care requirements struck down by lower court