State Rep. Brad Tabke, DFL-Shakopee, and Republican candidate Aaron Paul will spend Christmas wondering which of them will be seated in the Minnesota House of Representatives next year.
Earlier this year, Tabke and Paul ran against each other in the race for House District 54A, a legislative seat in Scott County that encompasses much of Shakopee. The election between the pair proved to be among the closest electoral contests in Minnesota this year.
After a recount, Tabke led by 14 votes. However, Scott County later disclosed that 20 ballots in a Shakopee precinct were not counted, should have been counted, but were likely thrown away accidentally. Given this, Paul filed an election contest lawsuit which resulted in a trial that took place at the beginning of this week.
During the two-day trial, Tabke’s and Paul’s legal teams examined evidence which appears to have identified the voters whose 20 ballots were likely thrown out. At trial, six of those individuals testified that they voted for the DFL candidate. If this is the case, then Tabke would have won the election even if all 20 votes were properly counted.
“Their testimony confirms – without a doubt – my lead is impossible to surmount, and I’m confident the results of this election will not change,” said Tabke in a statement about the six individuals who testified.
Meanwhile, Paul has countered saying that election processes were not followed, and a new election is warranted.
“Election processes weren’t followed and more ballots were destroyed than make up the difference,” said Paul. “Our commitment to free, fair, and secret ballot elections demand a new election.”
According to documents from the case, both parties will submit closing arguments and proposed orders to Judge Tracy Perzel in the coming two weeks. The judge will take those under advisement on Dec. 30 and issue her decision no later than the first day of next year’s legislative session, Jan. 14, 2025.
Should one of the parties be unhappy with Perzel’s ruling, they could appeal to the Minnesota Supreme Court. According to state law, the Supreme Court must take up the matter immediately after the case is appealed to them.
However, the Minnesota House of Representatives has final authority on matters relating to the election and eligibility of its own members. As such, the election challenge could be decided by the sitting members of the Minnesota House when the state legislature reconvenes in January.
If that happens, both parties will get a chance to present their evidence to the chamber, and lay out their case. Afterwards, the members of the House will hold a voice vote to decide the election contest. If one of the parties is a member of the chamber, they are not permitted to vote on the matter.
Furthermore, the law states that “a majority of the votes given decides the issue.”
As such, Tabke will not be able to vote on his own election contest if the matter comes to a vote in the House. This would mean that there would be 67 voting Republicans and 66 voting Democrats. Given this reality, Republicans appear to have the votes to decide the election contest themselves.
Luke Sprinkel
Luke Sprinkel previously worked as a Legislative Assistant at the Minnesota House of Representatives. He grew up as a Missionary Kid (MK) living in England, Thailand, Tanzania, and the Middle East. Luke graduated from Regent University in 2018.
