The Minnesota Senate is on the ballot for the first time since the Democrats had a trifecta in state government — controlling the governorship, the Senate, and the Minnesota House of Representatives from 2023 through 2024.
During the 2023 legislative session, Democrats passed some of the most extreme new laws Minnesota has ever seen. Additionally, they increased the size of state government by nearly 40% when they grew the state’s two-year budget from $52 billion to $72 billion.
Since then, every member of the House has faced the voters during the 2024 state elections. However, the entire Minnesota Senate is now on the ballot for the first time since 2022, and many Democrats will have to answer for the trifecta’s actions in 2023 and 2024.
One of those DFLers is Sen. Grant Hauschild, who represents Senate District 3.
Minnesota Senate District 3: Northeastern Minnesota
Senate District 3 encompasses the northeastern point of Minnesota and stretches along the Canadian border and Lake Superior. The district includes Hermantown, International Falls, Two Harbors, and many rural cities and towns.
Back in 2022, Hauschild won his first term in the Senate when he beat Republican Andrea Zupancich by less than two points. Now, Zupancich, the mayor of Babbitt, is running against Hauschild again, and the race could be even closer than last time.
Currently, the Senate has a one-vote DFL majority, and a change in just one seat would hand the chamber to Republicans. Hauschild is considered one of the most vulnerable Democrats in the Senate — two years ago his district was won by President Donald Trump.
DFL Sen. Grant Hauschild
A native of North Dakota, Hauschild graduated from the University of North Dakota and George Washington University before running for a seat in the North Dakota House of Representatives as a Democrat in 2016. He lost that election.
Eventually, Hauschild moved to northern Minnesota where he won a seat on the Hermantown City Council in 2020. Two years later, he won his seat in the Minnesota Senate.
Hauschild joined the Senate in 2023 just when the DFL took control of all three branches of state government. In turn, the DFL embarked on a campaign to reshape the state in ways which had never been seen before.
One of the key pieces of legislation passed by the DFL trifecta was HF 1, a bill that removed all restrictions on abortion and allowed women to abort their child even into the ninth month of pregnancy. Hauschild voted for that bill, which passed the Senate by one vote.
Another hallmark piece of legislation enacted by the DFL trifecta was a bill that allows illegal aliens to obtain driver’s licenses in Minnesota. Hauschild voted for that bill which passed the Senate in a 34-31 vote.
Not only did the DFL trifecta give illegal aliens driver’s licenses, but they also allowed illegal aliens to access MinnesotaCare, a state-run healthcare program for low income individuals. Hauschild voted for a massive omnibus bill which included MinnesotaCare for illegal aliens.
However, Hauschild would eventually be among a handful of Democrats who voted to prevent illegal alien adults from using MinnesotaCare in 2025.
The 2023 legislative session also saw Democrats pass legislation which increased the gas tax by indexing it to inflation, raised the vehicle registration tax, provided free school meals for K-12 students, and created the Paid Leave program. Hauschild voted for all of those laws.
In total, the DFL trifecta grew the size of Minnesota’s state government by nearly 40%.
The next legislative term in 2025-26 was not as radical because Republicans managed to win a tie in the House in 2024. However, Hauschild was among a group of DFLers who backed a sweeping gun control bill in response to the Annunciation shooting and the shootings of two state lawmakers.
That bill would have banned federally licensed firearms dealers from selling a wide swath of firearms, including the AR-15, the most popular firearm in America. The bill also would have banned federally licensed dealers from selling magazines with more than 17 rounds.
Additionally, the gun control bill would have required people to register their AR-15s with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. The bill passed the Senate by a 34-33 vote with Hauschild voting in favor of it. However, the bill never came up for a vote in the House.
Before voting on the bill, Hauschild gave an emotional speech on the Senate floor in which he said two of his cousins were at Annunciation when the shooting broke out. Hauschild said the bill focuses on “restrictions on the point of sale so that future sales don’t happen, but … existing gun owners don’t get impacted.”
Alpha News contacted Hauschild for this story. He was asked about his record and specifically questioned about whether he believes the DFL trifecta went too far in 2023-24. However, he did not provide any comments for this story.
Hauschild’s campaign website touts his votes for free school meals, paid family leave, the creation of a state child tax credit up $1,750 per child, a Social Security tax relief package, and legislation to create a new office that investigates fraud in state agencies and programs.
Republican Andrea Zupancich
A mother and real estate agent, Zupancich is currently serving her 10th non-consecutive, two-year term as the mayor of Babbitt, a town in St. Louis County roughly 65 miles north of Duluth. Babbitt has a population of nearly 1,400, according to the 2020 census.
In addition to her service as mayor, Zupancich’s husband is the fourth generation to own Zup’s, a chain of five grocery stores in northern Minnesota. The first store opened in 1916.
Alpha News contacted Zupancich for this story. Among other things, she was asked about her thoughts on the way the DFL trifecta governed and what three bills she would want a GOP Senate to pass first. However, she did not respond prior to a publication deadline.
On her website, Zupancich describes herself as “pro-mining” and says “today, the need for domestic mining is greater than ever” and “I will fight to cut through the red tape that has stalled projects for decades and bring good-paying jobs back to northern Minnesota.”
Additionally, the Republican mayor says she “will fiercely defend your Second Amendment rights against any attempt to infringe upon them and will champion legislation that protects law-abiding gun owners.”
Zupancich also says she wants fewer mandates on local governments and “reasonable limits” on the governor’s emergency powers. She also pledged to support law enforcement and work to root out fraud in state government.
“I will demand honest, transparent government and work to root out waste, fraud, and abuse at every level,” notes her website.
This article is part of a series called “Swing-District Spotlight” in which Alpha News examines competitive state legislative seats across Minnesota in the 2026 elections.
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.
