With the release of the DFL’s budget earlier this month, the war of words (and policies) in the budget battle between the DFL leadership and Minnesota Republican Governor Tim Pawlenty has seemingly intensified.

During her media availability last Friday, House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher described her recent meeting with the Governor on the budget as “tense” and “a little rocky.” The Speaker laced her stated desire to have more budget meetings with Pawlenty with occasional admonishments of the Governor:

“The time for putting the political slogans aside has long passed…Come on – put aside your pledges and sloganeering and get down to work.”

As the DFL caucus lacks a veto-proof 90 votes in the House, both sides will more than likely need to make some compromises to see a budget through by mid-May.

Compromise, however, will not come easy.

A Smart Politics analysis of the partisan composition of state legislatures nationwide finds Governor Pawlenty facing the 4th largest Democratic-dominated legislature among the 22 Republican governors currently serving across the United States. Only the deep blue states of Rhode Island, Hawaii, and Connecticut elected Republican governors alongside a larger percentage of Senate and House legislators.

Pawlenty faces the 4th largest Democratic-led Senate among GOP governors, at 68.7 percent (46 of 67 legislators), behind Hawaii (92.0 percent), Rhode Island (86.8 percent), and Vermont (76.7 percent).

Pawlenty must also do battle with the 5th largest Democratic-dominated House among the nation’s 22 Republican governors, at 64.9 percent (87 of 134 legislators), behind Rhode Island (92.0 percent), Hawaii (88.2 percent), Connecticut (75.5 percent), and Nevada (66.7 percent).

Republican Governors by Percentage of Democrats Serving in State Legislatures, 2009

Rank
State
Governor
% Senate
% House
% Total
1
Rhode Island
Donald Carcieri
86.8
92.0
90.3
2
Hawaii
Linda Lingle
92.0
88.2
89.5
3
Connecticut
Jodi Rell
66.7
75.5
73.8
4
Minnesota
Tim Pawlenty
68.7
64.9
66.2
5
Vermont
Jim Douglas
76.7
63.3
65.6
6
California
Arnold Schwarzenegger
65.0
63.8
64.2
7
Nevada
Jim Gibbons
57.1
66.7
63.5
8
Alabama
Bob Riley
59.4
59.0
59.1
9
Mississippi
Haley Barbour
51.9
60.7
58.0
10
Louisiana
Bobby Jindal
59.5
49.5
52.1
11
Texas
Rick Perry
38.7
49.3
47.5
12
Alaska
Sarah Palin
50.0
45.0
46.7
13
Indiana
Mitch Daniels
34.0
52.0
46.0
14
South Carolina
Mark Sanford
41.3
42.7
42.4
15
Arizona
Jan Brewer
40.0
41.7
41.1
16
Georgia
Sonny Perdue
39.3
41.7
41.1
17
North Dakota
John Hoeven
44.7
38.3
40.4
18
Florida
Charlie Crist
35.0
36.7
36.3
19
South Dakota
Mike Rounds
40.0
34.3
36.2
20
Nebraska*
Jay Heineman
34.7
—
34.7
21
Utah
John Huntsman
27.6
29.3
28.8
22
Idaho
Butch Otter
20.0
25.7
23.8

* Nebraska has a unicameral, non-partisan legislature. Legislators identify as Republicans or Democrats for informational purposes only. Data from National Conference of State Legislatures compiled by Smart Politics.

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Posted in Budget and taxes, Minnesota, MN State House, MN State Senate

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