SAINT PAUL – On January 10, 2025, Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon sent a letter to leaders of the Minnesota House of Representatives from the Republican and Democratic-Farmer-Labor parties. In the letter, he provides information on his role under state law and the reasoning for his legal conclusion that a quorum in the house requires 68 members to be present.
Read the letter to Representative Lisa Demuth (R) and Representative Melissa Hortman (DFL).
As established by Minnesota Statutes Section 5.05, the Secretary of State is to convene the House of Representatives at the start of each legislative session. The responsibilities of this role are limited to appointing a clerk pro tem, determining if a quorum is present, and presiding over the House until a Speaker is elected.
Secretary Simon has performed this role at the start of the 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021, and 2023 Legislative Sessions and will again for the start of the 2025 Legislative Session.
Secretary Simon issued the following statement:
“Minnesotans deserve transparency in government. With this principle as a guiding light, I have written a public letter to the leaders of both parties in the House of Representatives explaining the facts regarding the unique circumstances before us.
As a member of the Executive Branch, my role is necessarily and appropriately limited in convening the House of Representatives and presiding until a speaker is elected. Under the law, one of my limited responsibilities is to determine if there is a quorum present.
After extensive research and consultation with nonpartisan experts, I conclude that the Constitution and state statute define the majority needed for a quorum in the House of Representatives as 68 members. A detailed rationale for this conclusion is available for anyone to review in the public letter.
If there are not 68 members present, I have no authority to take any further action and will adjourn.
My legal conclusion is based only on a careful review of the state constitution and laws – not on political considerations of any kind. 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.”