Mitchell
Left: The Minnesota Senate chamber (Hayley Feland/Alpha News); Right: Sen. Nicole Mitchell/Minnesota Senate

Senate Republicans attempted to expel State Sen. Nicole Mitchell, DFL-Woodbury, from the Minnesota Senate during a Monday floor session. This measure was the latest in a series of GOP efforts to take action against the Woodbury senator following her arrest last year.

In April of 2024, Mitchell was arrested in Detroit Lakes after allegedly entering her step-mother’s home unlawfully with the intent to commit a crime. Mitchell was later charged with first-degree burglary and has pleaded not guilty.

The Woodbury senator was scheduled to go on trial this week, but a judge recently delayed the trial after Mitchell requested a continuance until after the legislative session concludes. The trial is now set to occur in June of this year.

Since Mitchell was first arrested, Republicans have called on her to resign and criticized her decision to remain in the Senate. A vote of two-thirds of the Senate is required to expel a member from the chamber. At present, the Minnesota Senate is tied with 33 Republicans, 33 Democrats, and one vacancy.

On Monday, Sen. Jordan Rasmusson, R-Fergus Falls, made a motion on the Senate floor to expel Mitchell from the Senate. In discussing his motion, Rasmusson provided many details about the case, said Mitchell’s conduct was unbecoming of a senator, and said that the DFLer used her position as a senator to delay her trial.

The GOP legislator also noted that Mitchell has lost the ability to fully represent her district because she was removed from her committee assignments following her arrest.

Sen. Nick Frentz, DFL-North Mankato, opposed the Rasmusson motion and stated that the chamber has never expelled a member prior to the resolution of a criminal case. The North Mankato legislator went on to say that the Senate Ethics Committee is awaiting the outcome of the criminal proceedings before determining next steps.

Citing a rule from Mason’s Manual, Frentz asked the presiding officer, Sen. Bobby Joe Champion, DFL-Minneapolis, to rule the Rasmusson motion out of order because Mitchell has not received full due process in her case.

Because the Senate is tied 33-33, the GOP and DFL are utilizing a power-sharing agreement which stipulates that there will be co-presiding officers, Champion and Sen. Jeremy Miller, R-Winona. As such, Champion and Miller met with the secretary of the Senate to discuss how to rule on the matter.

Eventually, the Senate went into recess so the secretary of the Senate, Champion, Miller, the leader of the Senate GOP, and the leader of the Senate DFL could discuss the situation.

When the Senate floor session resumed, Champion ruled that the motion to expel Mitchell was out of order. That ruling was appealed and Republicans said the Senate’s authority to expel its own members is absolute as prescribed in the Minnesota Constitution. Therefore, the GOP argued, no legislative rule trumps the Senate’s constitutional authority.

The vote to appeal the ruling was split 33-33 along party lines; all the Democrats (including Sen. Mitchell) voted to uphold the president’s ruling while all the Republicans voted against the ruling. In turn, the motion to expel Mitchell was dismissed and the Senate adjourned.

Following the floor session, Senate Republican Leader Mark Johnson released a statement saying, “Senator Mitchell is abusing her status as a Senator to delay her trial and deny justice for her victim. Last year we heard time and time again how she deserves her day in court before we can decide on her status, and she has played both the judicial system and the Senate Rules to her own—and only her own—advantage.”

“[Mitchell] knew her trial was scheduled during session and yet waited until session started to request the delay,” added Johnson. “The Senate should not be complicit in this legal strategy and pretend its hands are tied in the matter. We can and we should vote to expel Sen. Mitchell and let the courts take over the matter as soon as possible.”

Alpha News reached out to Sen. Mitchell and the Senate DFL for comment. Neither entity responded to a media inquiry. At a press conference after the floor session, Senate DFL Leader Erin Murphy said that Mitchell deserves due process and Mitchell’s constituents are entitled to representation in the Senate.

“Her court case is not a matter for the Senate,” added Murphy. “What is a matter for the Senate is balancing the budget and getting policies passed that will improve the lives of the people of Minnesota, and I hope to God that my colleagues reach that conclusion with me so we can do that important work.”

 


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.





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