The Republican candidate for a north metro legislative seat who successfully sued his DFL opponent over his residency eligibility will run in a special election.
Paul Wikstrom filed his affidavit of candidacy on Tuesday to run in the Jan. 28 special election for Minnesota House District 40B.
The longtime Shoreview resident works as a manager in the medical device industry and will run again for the seat that represents Roseville and a portion of Shoreview, after he lost the Nov. 5 election to Democrat Curtis Johnson by more than 30 points.
Five DFLers also filed to run for the seat before the Dec. 31 deadline. A DFL primary will be held Jan. 14, according to the Minnesota Secretary of State.
While residents of the district have voted reliably for DFL candidates in recent election cycles, the seat has been in the political spotlight since a Ramsey County judge ruled on Dec. 20 that Johnson was enjoined from taking the oath of office because he failed to meet residency requirements to serve the district.
One week later, Johnson wrote a letter to Gov. Tim Walz stating that he would abide by the court ruling. Walz then issued a writ of special election that calls for a Jan. 28 election date.
Because of the vacancy that will be left by the judge’s ruling, Republicans will hold a 67-66 advantage over Democrats when the 2025 legislative session begins on Jan. 14.
Activist, city councilmember among DFL candidates
Just minutes after Curtis Johnson publicly disseminated his letter to Walz, Democrat activist David Gottfried announced he would pursue the DFL endorsement for the seat. Gottfried ran for the House District 40B seat last spring but was edged out by Johnson for the DFL endorsement in April.
Since then, Gottfried had regularly door knocked for Johnson, even after Wikstrom went public in October with his allegation that Johnson was not living in the apartment he had leased in the district.
Gottfried and four other self-declared Democrats are expected to pursue the DFL endorsement, which takes place on Jan. 1, according to DFL Senate District 40. Those include: Shoreview City Councilmember John Doan, Mark Pitman, Jasmine Carey and Kaying Thao.
Johnson had originally announced he would run for the House District 40B seat last January. He almost immediately received endorsements from several DFL legislators, including outgoing 40B Rep. Jamie Becker-Finn. It’s not known whether Becker-Finn was aware Johnson continued to live in his Little Canada home outside the district.
Alpha News made several attempts before and after the election to seek comments from Becker-Finn and Speaker of the House Melissa Hortman about Johnson’s residency status. Neither replied to those requests.
Special Senate election
More than a dozen candidates have filed to run for a special election in Senate District 60 to replace Democratic Sen. Kari Dziedzic, who died from ovarian cancer Friday.
Ten Democrats have filed for election in the deep-blue Minneapolis district, including: Doron Clark, Peter Wagenius, Iris Grace Altamirano, Mohamed Jama, Monica Meyer, Joshua Preston, Amal Karim, Emilio César Rodríguez, Clay Morgan, and Harold Melcher.
Three Republicans jumped into the race, including: Jonathan Kraemer, Abigail Wolters, and Christopher Robin Zimmerman.
Primaries will take place Jan. 14 followed by a special election on Jan. 28. Dziedzic’s passing means the Minnesota Senate will be tied 33-33 when the session begins.
Process criticized
Several Republicans have criticized Gov. Walz for his handling of the special elections, including incoming Minnesota GOP Chair Alex Plechash.
“The first questionable decision was in House District 40B, where he called a special election for a seat that is not yet vacant. Now, we see a rushed filing deadline for another special election in Senate District 60, forcing candidates to decide whether to run for a Minnesota Senate seat in just 24 hours—and during the holidays,” said Plechash.
“This process undermines transparency and fairness, limiting opportunities for the best candidates to step forward.”
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.
