ST. PAUL 鈥� Paul Wikstrom, Republican candidate for Minnesota House seat 40B, won his election contest lawsuit Friday, Dec. 20, after a Ramsey County judge ordered Rep. Curtis Johnson to be prohibited from taking office come the session鈥檚 start in January.
The lawsuit, filed Nov. 20, alleged Johnson did not reside at his Roseville apartment in District 40B, but in Little Canada. Minnesota law requires senators and representatives to reside one year in the state and six months immediately preceding the election in the district they are elected to represent.
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In the Friday ruling, the judge said the court believes Johnson spent 鈥渟cant time鈥� in the Roseville apartment until Oct. 15. The ruling will momentarily give Republicans a majority in the Minnesota House of 67-66.
The investigation was prompted when Wikstrom was door-knocking in Roseville on Sept. 7. He encountered former City Council member Robert Williams, who pointed out Johnson allegedly did not live in the district, but in Little Canada, and kept an apartment in Roseville to 鈥渕aintain the appearance of living in the district,鈥� according to the court order.
Wikstrom鈥檚 campaign then began gathering video and photo evidence leading up to the election in November, even going so far as to put tape on the door.
Johnson testified that he was 鈥渨orking very hard to make sure鈥� he stayed over at the apartment in Roseville 鈥� which he allegedly moved into in March 鈥� 鈥渁t least a couple times a week,鈥� according to court documents.
Johnson attributed difficulties in the housing market and parenting duties as the main reasons he spent so much time at the Little Canada residence.
The court said in their order that they 鈥渄o not wish to discount the difficulties of the search for a house in the current market or caring for the mental health struggles of a child. But ultimately, it seems that the testimony of all three of the contestee鈥檚 witnesses evidence an intent to move to the district in the future, but do not change the fact of Mr. Johnson鈥檚 residency for the month of May through mid October.鈥�
Judge Leonardo Castro ruled Friday that Johnson is not eligible to serve as a representative for Minnesota House District 40B. The order stated the matter can be appealed to the Minnesota Supreme Court.
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Minnesota law states the House will next vote on the matter to determine the result of the contest. Following the vote on the election contest lawsuit, a special election could be ordered by Gov. Tim Walz to fill the vacancy.
Co-Minnesota House Speaker-designate Rep. Lisa Demuth, R-Cold Spring, released a statement following the verdict.
鈥淲ith the overwhelming evidence we heard during the trial that the Democrat candidate in Roseville never lived in the district, I applaud the court鈥檚 decision to grant the election contest and look forward to ensuring that a valid candidate represents District 40B during the upcoming legislative session,鈥� she said in the statement. 鈥淭his is a clear reminder that laws matter, and integrity in the election process is non-negotiable.鈥�
Co-Minnesota House Speaker-designate Rep. Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park also released a statement on Friday, saying the DFL House caucus hopes to appeal the ruling.
鈥淭he court erred as a matter of law in not dismissing this case," Hortman said in the statement. "A residency issue must be resolved before an election and is not an appropriate basis for an election contest. We will appeal to the Minnesota Supreme Court, and expect the Supreme Court will dismiss the case. The Republicans are seeking to do in court what they were unable to do at the ballot box. Curtis Johnson won District 40B by 7,503 votes, and no court should lightly overturn the will of the voters.鈥�
Another election contest lawsuit for Minnesota House seat 54B. That case revolves around the issue of 20 missing ballots in November鈥檚 general election.
The Trust Project
