A police officer from Shakopee who lost a controversial 2024 Minnesota House of Representatives race by just 14 votes announced he will seek a rematch.
On Monday, Aaron Paul declared his candidacy again as a Republican for the House District 54A seat next year that’s currently held by DFLer Brad Tabke.
“Shakopee families are looking for leaders who will put the focus back on public service, not the extremes,” said Paul, a law enforcement officer with more than 30 years of experience and a married father of three children. “Families, students, educators, seniors, workers, and small business owners want someone who is authentic, accessible, willing to listen, and committed to bringing people together to create solutions to our shared priorities.”
Tabke has held fundraisers for his campaign committee this summer and has indicated he’ll seek a fourth (non-consecutive) term in the House, which is tied 67-67.
The 2024 race between Paul and Tabke gained national attention after its outcome sat in limbo for more than two months due to recounts, lost ballots and legal challenges. A district judge ultimately decided in mid-January that the recount results were valid, despite the fact that 20 lost ballots had never been recovered.
Election night reporting discrepancies and lost ballots
At 10:45 p.m. on Nov. 5 the Minnesota Secretary of State’s website reported Paul had a 345-vote lead over Tabke after 100 percent of precincts were reported. But 30 minutes later, all results for the District 54A race were pulled from the website. And just after 2 a.m., results appeared again on the election results page showing Tabke had won by 13 votes.
Two weeks later, following a recount that showed Tabke had won by 14 votes, Scott County announced that 20 ballots were likely “thrown away” and “likely will not be recovered.”
The legal outcome of that seat remained in limbo until a district court ruling in January determined that no special election was necessary because Paul had “not proven his three election contest grounds by the greater weight of the evidence.” The judge added that “there is no basis in fact or law for holding a special election.” Paul decided not to appeal the ruling on technical grounds.
Swing district bounces back and forth between GOP, DFL
The southwest suburban seat, which includes most of Shakopee and neighboring Jackson Township, is again expected to be one of the most competitive swing districts in the state.
While Tabke will be vying for a fourth term in the legislature, his three previous election wins haven’t been consecutive.
The Shakopee area’s House seat has bounced back and forth between Republican and DFL representation the previous three election cycles.
In 2018, incumbent GOP legislator Bob Loonan lost an endorsement and then primary challenge to grassroots candidate Erik Mortensen. Mortensen was defeated in the 2018 general election by then-Shakopee Mayor Brad Tabke.
In a 2020 rematch, Mortensen unseated Tabke after winning another GOP primary election against Loonan. In 2022, Mortensen and Loonan battled for a third time, with Mortensen coming out on top again before losing to Tabke by 8 percentage points in November.
Hank Long
Hank Long is a journalism and communications professional whose writing career includes coverage of the Minnesota legislature, city and county governments and the commercial real estate industry. Hank received his undergraduate degree at the University of Minnesota, where he studied journalism, and his law degree at the University of St. Thomas. The Minnesota native lives in the Twin Cities with his wife and four children. His dream is to be around when the Vikings win the Super Bowl.
