The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower house of the Legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota. There are 134 members, twice as many as the Minnesota Senate. Floor sessions are held in the north wing of the State Capitol in Saint Paul. Offices for members and staff, as well as most committee hearings, are located in the nearby State Office Building.
Established in 1858, the Minnesota House of Representatives has 134 members elected from single-member districts across the state. Representatives serve two-year terms without term limits, with all seats up for election every two years. The House is led by the Speaker, who is elected by members of the House, while political party leadership is governed by the Majority and Minority Leaders.
The Minnesota House of Representatives meets in the north wing of the State Capitol in Saint Paul. Member and staff offices, as well as most committee hearings, are in the nearby State Office Building.
History
The Minnesota House of Representatives was officially established on May 11, 1858, when Minnesota was admitted as the 32nd state in the Union. It replaced the Minnesota Territorial Legislature. It was formed alongside the Minnesota Senate to create the Minnesota State Legislature, the bicameral legislative body of the state.
In 1913, Minnesota legislators began to be elected on nonpartisan ballots. While campaigning and caucusing, legislators identified themselves as "Liberals" or "Conservatives." In 1973, a law change brought party designations back, beginning with the 1974 Minnesota House of Representatives election.[2]
Each Senate district is divided in half and given the suffix A or B (for example, House district 32B is in Senate district 32). Members are elected to two-year terms.[5] Districts are redrawn after the decennial United States Census in time for the primary and general elections in years ending in 2. The most recent election was on November 5, 2024.
The 94th Minnesota Legislature began on January 14, 2025. 67 representatives were elected to each major party, the second ever tie in the Minnesota House.[8] After the election of Curtis Johnson (District 40B) was nullified in court,[6] the session began with 67 Republican members, while the 66 elected DFL members sat out in an effort to deny quorum.[9] On March 11, 2025, David Gottfried (DFL) was elected to the seat, restoring the 67-67 tie.[10] After Gottfried was seated, Melissa Hortman was granted the title "DFL Leader" instead of "Minority Leader", and the two parties entered into a power-sharing agreement.[11]
Magnus Johnson, U.S. senator from Minnesota (1923–1925); U.S. representative from Minnesota's general ticket Seat Five district (1933–1935)
Ernest Lundeen, U.S. senator from Minnesota (1937–1940); U.S. representative from Minnesota's 3rd district (1917–1919); U.S. representative from Minnesota's general ticket Seat Eight district (1933–1935); U.S. representative from Minnesota's 3rd district (1935–1937)
Dwight M. Sabin, U.S. senator from Minnesota (1883–1889); Chair of the Republican National Committee (1883–1884)
William D. Washburn, U.S. senator from Minnesota (1889–1895); U.S. representative from Minnesota's 3rd district (1879–1883) and 4th district (1883–1885)
Governors of Minnesota
Wendell R. Anderson, U.S. senator from Minnesota (1976–1978); 33rd governor of Minnesota (1971–1976)
Joseph A. A. Burnquist, 19th governor of Minnesota (1915–1921); 20th lieutenant governor of Minnesota (1913–1915); 21st attorney general of Minnesota (1939–1955)
Arne Carlson, 37th governor of Minnesota (1991–1999); 14th auditor of Minnesota (1979–1991)
Cushman Kellogg Davis, U.S. senator from Minnesota (1887–1900); 7th governor of Minnesota (1874–1876)
Konrad K. Solberg, 27th lieutenant governor of Minnesota (1933–1935)
James Wakefield, 9th lieutenant governor of Minnesota (1876–1880); U.S. representative from Minnesota's 2nd district (1883–1887)
William H. Yale, 6th lieutenant governor of Minnesota (1870–1874)
Attorneys general of Minnesota
Joseph A. A. Burnquist, 19th governor of Minnesota (1915–1921); 20th lieutenant governor of Minnesota (1913–1915); 21st attorney general of Minnesota (1939–1955)
Gordon E. Cole, 2nd attorney general of Minnesota (1860–1866)
William J. Colvill, 3rd attorney general of Minnesota (1866–1888); Union colonel during the U.S. Civil War (1861–1863)
Keith Ellison, 30th attorney general of Minnesota (2019–present); U.S. representative from Minnesota's 5th district (2007–2019); deputy chair of the Democratic National Committee (2017–2018)
Douglas M. Head, 25th attorney general of Minnesota (1967–1971)
Albert F. Pratt, 16th attorney general of Minnesota (1927–1928)
Henry M. Arens, 26th lieutenant governor of Minnesota (1931–1933); U.S. representative from Minnesota's General Ticket Seat One district (1933–1935)
Ignatius L. Donnelly, 2nd lieutenant governor of Minnesota (1860–1863); U.S. representative from Minnesota's 2nd district (1863–1869)
Keith Ellison, 30th attorney general of Minnesota (2019–present); U.S. representative from Minnesota's 5th district (2007–2019); deputy chair of the Democratic National Committee (2017–2018)
Tom Emmer, U.S. House of Representatives majority whip (2023–present); chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee (2019–2023); U.S. representative from Minnesota's 6th district (2015–present)
Arlen Erdahl, 18th secretary of state of Minnesota (1971–1975); U.S. representative from Minnesota's 1st district (1979–1983)
Brad Finstad, U.S. representative from Minnesota's 1st district (2022–present)
Gil Gutknecht, U.S. representative from Minnesota's 1st district (1995–2007)
Magnus Johnson, U.S. senator from Minnesota (1923–1925); U.S. representative from Minnesota's general ticket Seat Five district (1933–1935)
Ernest Lundeen, U.S. senator from Minnesota (1937–1940); U.S. representative from Minnesota's 3rd district (1917–1919); U.S. representative from Minnesota's general ticket Seat Eight district (1933–1935); U.S. representative from Minnesota's 3rd district (1935–1937)
Betty McCollum, U.S. representative from Minnesota's 4th district (2001–present)
Rick Nolan, U.S. representative from Minnesota's 8th district (2013–2019); 6th district (1975–1981)
William I. Nolan, 26th lieutenant governor of Minnesota (1925–1929); U.S. representative from Minnesota's 5th district (1929–1933)
Ilhan Omar, U.S. representative from Minnesota's 5th district (2019–present)
Erik Paulsen, U.S. representative from Minnesota's 3rd district (2009–2019)
James Wakefield, 9th lieutenant governor of Minnesota (1876–1880); U.S. representative from Minnesota's 2nd district (1883–1887)
William D. Washburn, U.S. senator from Minnesota (1889–1895); U.S. representative from Minnesota's 3rd district (1879–1883) and 4th district (1883–1885)
Thomas Wilson, U.S. representative from Minnesota's 1st district (1887–1889); Chief justice of the supreme court of Minnesota (1865–1869); associate justice of the supreme court of Minnesota (1864–1865)
Others
Francis Baasen, 1st secretary of state of Minnesota (1858–1860)
^After the election of Curtis Johnson was successfully challenged in court due to residency requirements, there is a vacancy in district 40B,[6] to be filled March 11.[7]
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