Two special elections for Minnesota House seats Tuesday likely to return chamber to tie

Two special elections Tuesday for seats in the Minnesota House will determine the makeup of the chamber heading into next month's legislative session.

Kaohly Her resigned from St. Paul's House District 64A after winning the city's mayoral election. DFL-er and labor lawyer Meg Luger-Nikolai will face the GOP's Dan Walsh, a small business owner.

The district, which includes the Merriam Park and Summit Hill neighborhoods, is a heavily Democratic-leaning area.

The other vacancy is in House District 47A, which covers parts of Woodbury and Maplewood. Amanda Hemmingsen-Jaeger won the seat by 20 points in 2022 and represented the area before she was elected to the Minnesota Senate, replacing former DFL State Sen. Nicole Mitchell, who was convicted of burglary last year.

The DFL's Shelley Buck, a leader of the Prairie Island Indian Community, is the lone candidate on the ballot. No Republicans filed in the race.

Should Democrats win both seats, the Minnesota House will return to a tied chamber, as it was during the 2025 session. In the Senate, state Democrats hold on to a one-seat majority.

Tuesday's special elections cap off a tumultuous year of turnover in the Minnesota Legislature marked by unexpected deaths of lawmakers — including the assassination of Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman – and legal challenges for members, including the arrest of former GOP state Sen. Justin Eichorn, charged with soliciting a teen for sex. 

Minnesota's legislative session is set to begin on Feb. 17.

This story will be updated with election results.