Democrat wins special election for Minnesota state House seat

Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) candidate David Gottfried has won the special election for a seat in the Minnesota House, according to a Decision Desk HQ projection.

Gottfried, a pro bono specialist at a law firm, defeated Republican candidate Paul Wikstrom, an engineer manager and instructor pilot, for Minnesota House seat 40B, which includes portions of Shoreview and Roseville.

Gottfried was expected to win the seat, which has voted overwhelmingly Democratic in past election cycles. The Minnesota DFL candidate’s win now brings the state House to a 67-67 tie.

The special election was prompted after DFL candidate Curtis Johnson won the seat in November but was later found to not have met the district residency requirements.

Johnson’s initial win put the state House at an even 67-67 tie, but after the judge ruled he was ineligible, the GOP had a temporary 67-66 edge in the lower chamber.

The state House then had a tumultuous start to the session, with DFL members refusing to head to work at the state Capitol as the two parties couldn’t come to an agreement over how to proceed, given the GOP’s temporary majority that would later be brought back to a tie in.

Republicans sought to elect a Speaker and conduct business without the DFL members, arguing 67 members constituted a quorum — an interpretation of the state Constitution that was later struck down by the Minnesota Supreme Court. The two parties ultimately came to a power-sharing agreement last month that included electing Republican Lisa DeMuth as Speaker.