This browser does not support the Video element.
MN Legislature: Special elections to fill open seats
Multiple special elections are expected to fill three seats at the Minnesota Legislature following the deaths of Rep. Melissa Hortman and Sen. Bruce Anderson, as well as the conviction of Sen. Nicole Mitchell.
WOODBURY, Minn. (FOX 9) - A special primary is underway on Tuesday as candidates battle for the Minnesota Senate seat once held by Nicole Mitchell in Woodbury.
RELATED: Minnesota Senate District 29 special primary election Tuesday
Special primary in Woodbury
What we know:
Three candidates have filed to run for the Senate District 47 seat, which covers Woodbury and southern parts of Maplewood, in the east metro.
State Reps. Ethan Cha and Amanda Hemmingsen-Jaeger have filed for the DFL ticket. On the Republican side, St. Paul teacher Dwight Dorau, who ran against Mitchell in 2022, won't face a primary challenger.
Photos of Rep. Amanda Hemmingsen-Jaeger and Rep. Ethan Cha. (Minnesota Senate / Supplied)
Mitchell easily won the seat by 16 points in 2022. However, races in 2020 and 2016 for District 53 – the district that covered Woodbury prior to 2020 redistricting – were much closer, particularly in 2016, when the DFL candidate won by less than a point.
Where you can vote:
Primary voting runs until 8 p.m. on Tuesday. You can click here to find your polling location.
What's next:
The special election for the District 47 seat will be held on Election Day, November 4.
Mitchell resigned from office
The backstory:
Mitchell resigned from her Senate seat in July, days after being found guilty of breaking into her stepmother's home at trial. Mitchell, a former television meteorologist and National Guard member, was in the midst of her first term in the Senate when she stepped down.
She was charged with breaking into her stepmother's home in April 2024. At trial, Mitchell claimed she had only broken in to check on her stepmother, who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's. However, body camera video showed Mitchell dressed up like a burglar in a movie, dressed in all black, with a black cap, and a flashlight. Speaking with officers who caught her, she admitted on video: "Clearly, I'm not good at this."
Senate District 29 primary on Tuesday
Big picture view:
A special primary is also underway for Senate District 29, which covers much of Wright County, including Buffalo, Maple Lake, and Delano, and stretches into small parts of Hennepin County near Rockford and Kingston in Meeker County. That seat was left vacant by Bruce Anderson, who passed away in July.
Earlier this month, Xp Lee won the DFL primary to fill the House seat held by Melissa Hortman until she was assassinated earlier this summer.
The Source: This story uses previous FOX 9 reporting and information from the Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State website.