MN State House
Female Legislators in MN At Record High; IA, WI, and SD Lag Behind National Average
Minnesota voters set a record in November 2006 by electing the highest percentage of female legislators to both the state House (43, 32.1 percent) and Senate (27, 40.3 percent) in Gopher State history. Overall, at 34.8 percent, Minnesota ranks 4th…
Read MoreTax Increases Not a Deal Breaker in Minnesota
The new Smart Politics commentary for Twin Cities Public Television’s Almanac: At the Capitol site is now posted here. In it I challenge the assertions made by Minnesota Republican state Representative Marty Seifert in his February 24th blog that Minnesotans…
Read MoreLarge Electoral Gains by Minority Party Not Uncommon in MN House
The DFL scored a major, although not an unexpected, victory last month by wrestling control of the State House from the GOP after four consecutive terms of Republican control. The size of the DFL’s victory—a 19-seat pickup—did surprise many political…
Read MorePresence and Impact of Third Party Candidates in MN House Races Declining
For a number of years State House races in Minnesota were peppered with a significant number of third party or independent candidates. In 2006, however, the presence of these non-major party candidates was the lowest in a decade. In 1998…
Read MoreMinnesota State Legislative Recount Update
Nearly one in five state house races in Minnesota (22 of 134, 16%) were decided by five percentage points or less in the 2006 Election. On November 21st, Minnesota Secretary of State Mary Kiffmeyer ordered recounts in three of the…
Read MoreSmart Politics Scorecard, Part II: State Legislative Roundup
The Democratic party scored big wins across Upper Midwest state legislatures on Tuesday night. As projected here at Smart Politics, the Democrats picked up seats in all 8 chambers and took control of three of them: the Iowa House, Wisconsin…
Read MoreUpper Midwest State Legislative Projections
The last in a series of election projections, Smart Politics predicts which political party will win control of state legislatures across the Upper Midwest. Democrats are in an advantaged position in most states in each legislative chamber to pick up…
Read MoreMN House: GOP at a Disadvantage
After losing thirteen seats in the Minnesota State House in 2004, the republicans hold a slim 68-66 advantage over their rival DFL. Even if one puts aside the fact that the state (and national) climate is trending democratic in recent…
Read MoreMN State Legislative Incumbents Hold Serve
No news was good news for the four Minnesota state legislative incumbents challenged in Tuesday’s primary—each of whom enjoyed a double-digit victory to move on to November’s general election. The big story was in District 12, where GOP incumbent…
Read MoreState Legislative Incumbents: Coasting in MN, Challenged in WI
While most interest and suspense among the public in election years is reserved for November, primaries can highlight the differences among states in the power of state legislative incumbency in deterring challenges from within one’s own party. Primaries today in…
Read More