The race for control of the Minnesota House of Representatives may not be over. Earlier today, House Republicans announced that they will file an election contest lawsuit in a House seat that has become the subject of significant controversy.
“The recount may be over, but the investigation into the 21 missing ballots in District 54A is still ongoing,” said House Speaker-desginate Lisa Demuth, the leader of the House Republicans. “Even after Friday’s recount, enough ballots remain missing to potentially sway the outcome of the election. House Republicans are taking action to ensure that every legal vote counts and that the election is decided by the people of District 54A without interference.”
Yesterday, the Scott County canvassing board certified the election results in House District 54A after a recount showed Rep. Brad Tabke, DFL-Shakopee, leading his Republican opponent, Aaron Paul, by just 14 votes in the race for the Scott County seat.
However, that certification occurred despite an ongoing investigation into ballot discrepancies in two Shakopee precincts.
Earlier this month, the county announced that its elections manager “identified a discrepancy in the count of ballots, in which 21 more absentee records than ballots were counted in the City of Shakopee. A comprehensive investigation into this situation was initiated as soon as it was identified, which is ongoing.”
That discrepancy was discovered on Nov. 7.
A Scott County spokesperson told Alpha News that “Shakopee Precinct 12A had a one ballot discrepancy; Shakopee P10 had had 20. All of these are within House legislative district 54A.”
After the certification occurred yesterday afternoon, a county spokesperson told Alpha News: “The investigation is ongoing. Any results will be reported through multiple media outlets when available.”
According to Fox 9, Tabke declared victory in the election last Friday after the recount concluded.
If Tabke were to occupy the seat, the House would be tied: 67 DFLers and 67 Republicans. If Paul were to occupy the seat, the Republicans would have a 68-66 majority. As such, the outcome of this matter will have major ramifications for Minnesota’s state government.
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.
