Less than a week since the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk reignited national fears over political violence, voters in a suburb of Minneapolis head to the polls Tuesday to replace former Minnesota state House Speaker, a Democrat who was gunned down in her home in June in what authorities described as another politically motivated attack.
Hortman was killed alongside her husband in their Brooklyn Park home by a man allegedly impersonating a police officer. Prosecutors say the suspect, 57-year-old Vance Boelter, was targeting Democratic politicians and abortion rights advocates.
Boelter also allegedly shot and wounded state Senator John Hoffman and his wife during the same attack. He has pleaded not guilty to multiple state and federal charges, including murder and attempted murder.
The contest to succeed Hortman has drawn statewide and national attention. Democrat Xp Lee, a former Brooklyn Park city council member and current health equity analyst, faces Republican Ruth Bittner, a real estate agent making her first run for public office.
Though the district leans heavily Democratic, the outcome could determine which party controls the Minnesota House, currently split 67-66 in favor of Republicans.
Lee has raised about $70,000, spending most of it on canvassing and campaign materials. Bittner has raised roughly half that amount and spent around $7,000, primarily on mailers and her campaign website.
High Stakes
Tuesday’s race has drawn in major political figures. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar campaigned with Lee over the weekend. Hoffman, the Democratic senator injured in the June shooting, made a surprise appearance to support Lee as well.
Despite it being a local election, the stakes are significant. If Lee wins, the House would return to a 67-67 tie, preserving the bipartisan power-sharing agreement negotiated after Democrats lost their majority in 2024. Hortman had stepped down as speaker under the deal but remained speaker emerita, while Republicans took control of the gavel.
An upset win by Bittner would give Republicans full control of the House for the first time since 2018, boosting their leverage against Walz and a narrowly Democratic Senate.
Despite the tension and recent violence, local leaders are encouraging voters to participate.
“Part of democracy is continuing no matter what happens,” said Brooklyn Park Mayor Hollies Winston. “Voting is one way to show the community is undeterred.”
Trump Weighs In
Amid the political fallout from recent attacks, President Donald Trump faced scrutiny over his differing responses to the deaths of Kirk and Hortman. While Trump ordered flags to be flown at half-staff across the country following Kirk’s death, he did not issue a similar directive after Hortman was killed.
Asked why, Trump said Monday that he would have acted if Walz had made a formal request. “Had the governor asked me to do that, I would have done that gladly,” Trump told reporters.
But in June, Trump had publicly dismissed the idea of contacting Walz, calling him “whacked out” and “a mess,” and saying it would be a “waste of time.”
Walz, who announced Tuesday that he will seek a third term as governor, responded through a spokesperson. “Governor Walz wishes that President Trump would be a president for all Americans,” said Teddy Tschann.
Two additional special elections are scheduled for November 4 to fill vacant state Senate seats. One race follows the death of Republican Senator Bruce Anderson; the other was triggered by the resignation of Democratic Senator Nicole Mitchell, who was convicted of burglarizing her stepmother’s home.
While those contests are not expected to shift control of the Senate, a win by Democratic nominee Amanda Hemmingsen-Jaeger in Mitchell’s district would prompt yet another special election for her House seat.
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