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This article lists political parties in Minnesota .
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| Constitution |
This article lists political parties in Minnesota .
Minnesota has had a history of favoring the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL) candidates in presidential elections since the 1960s. However, Minnesota has also had an active Republican Party that has been viewed as gaining more support since the late 1990s and early 2000s due to population migration to the suburbs along with the party's focus on socially conservative positions on gun control, abortion and gay rights. The DFL won a majority in the Minnesota House of Representatives for the first time since 1996 in the 2006 elections, defeating the Republican majority. Republicans won a majority in both houses of the Minnesota Legislature in the 2010 elections for the first time since 1973 when party designation for state legislators was reinstated, but lost both majorities to the DFL in the 2012 elections. The governorship is held by DFLer Tim Walz. [1]
Minnesota has one of the strongest levels of support among the states for independent and third-party candidates.
The Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party was a populist political party that managed to elect some of its candidates to the United States Congress, a rare feat among American third political parties, and eventually merged with the Minnesota Democratic Party in 1944 to create the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party. The success of the Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party shielded Minnesota from the worst of the restrictive ballot access laws that were passed in most states during the Red Scare era of the 1920s to 1950s. State law governing nominating petitions for third-party candidates and the definition of a major and minor political party have not prevented the rise of more than two major political parties, and have ensured that several different candidates are on the ballot in most state and federal elections.
In 1998, the Reform Party of Minnesota candidate for governor, Jesse Ventura, won the election. The Reform Party later became the Independence Party of Minnesota. In 2002, Sheila Kiscaden, who had previously been a Republican, was re-elected as a member of the Independence Party. The Green Party of Minnesota has had electoral success in city elections, particularly Minneapolis and Saint Paul.
Qualifying as a recognized major or minor political party is determined by how many candidates a party nominates for certain partisan offices, how well candidates for statewide office do in certain partisan elections, or a petition that has the required number of signatures. Generally, a party that presents a statewide candidate that receives at least eight percent of the vote or presents a petition to the secretary of state containing a number of signatures equal to at least five percent of the number of individuals who voted in the preceding general election qualifies as a recognized major party. Similarly, the threshold is one percent to qualify as a recognized minor party.
Parties recognized as a major or minor party are eligible to receive funds from the state elections campaign account. Recognized major parties also have automatic ballot access. [2]
| Party | Ideology | U.S. Congress | State Senate | State House | Executive Offices | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party [3] | DFL | Modern liberalism | 6 / 10 | 34 / 67 | 70 / 134 | 5 / 5 | |
 | Legal Marijuana Now Party [3] | LMN | Cannabis legalization | 0 / 10 | 0 / 67 | 0 / 134 | 0 / 5 | |
 | Republican Party [3] | R | Conservatism | 4 / 10 | 33 / 67 | 64 / 134 | 0 / 5 | |
| Party | Ideology | |
|---|---|---|
| Grassroots-Legalize Cannabis Party [3] | Cannabis legalization | |
| Independence—Alliance Party [3] | Classical liberalism | |
| Libertarian Party of Minnesota [3] | Libertarianism | |
The Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL) is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of 2024, it controls four of Minnesota's eight U.S. House seats, both of its U.S. Senate seats, the Minnesota House of Representatives and Senate, and all other statewide offices, including the governorship, making it the dominant party in the state.
Ballot access are rules and procedures regulating the right to candidacy, the conditions under which a candidate, political party, or ballot measure is entitled to appear on voters' ballots in elections in the United States. The jurisprudence of the right to candidacy and right to create a political party are less clear than voting rights in the United States. However, the U.S. Supreme Court has established in multiple cases that the federal constitution does not recognize a fundamental right to candidacy, and that state governments have a legitimate government interest in blocking "frivolous or fraudulent candidacies". As election processes are decentralized by Article I, Section 4, of the United States Constitution, ballot access laws are established and enforced by the states. As a result, ballot access processes may vary from one state to another. State access requirements for candidates generally pertain to personal qualities of a candidate, such as: minimum age, residency, and citizenship. Additionally, many states require prospective candidates to collect a specified number of qualified voters' signatures on petitions of support and mandate the payment of filing fees before granting access; ballot measures are similarly regulated. Each state also regulates how political parties qualify for automatic ballot access, and how those minor parties that do not can. Fundamental to democracy, topics related to ballot access are the subject of considerable debate in the United States.
The Republican Party of Minnesota is the state affiliate of the Republican Party in Minnesota and the oldest active political party in the state. Founded in 1855, the party controls four of Minnesota's eight congressional House seats. The last Republican governor of the state was Tim Pawlenty, who served from 2003 to 2011. The party's headquarters is located in Edina, Minnesota and the current chairman is David Hann. Starting in 2023 and as a result of the 2022 elections, the Republican Party of Minnesota does not have substantial power over the state, holding no statewide executive offices, no U.S. Senate seats, and minorities in the state legislatures.
The Grassroots—Legalize Cannabis Party (G—LC) is a political third party in the U.S. state of Minnesota created by Oliver Steinberg in 2014 to oppose cannabis prohibition. G—LC Is a democratic socialist party with a background branching from the Grassroots Party established in 1986.
The 2006 Minnesota gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Tim Pawlenty was endorsed by the state Republican convention on June 2, 2006, while the state Democratic–Farmer–Labor convention endorsed Mike Hatch on June 10, 2006. The party primaries took place on September 12, 2006, with Hatch defeating DFL challengers Becky Lourey and Ole Savior and incumbent Pawlenty defeating Sue Jeffers. In the November 7 general election, Pawlenty received a plurality of the votes, defeating Hatch by a margin of 1%. As a result, this election was the closest race of the 2006 gubernatorial election cycle.
Minnesota is known for a politically active citizenry, with populism being a longstanding force among the state's political parties. Minnesota has consistently high voter turnout; in the 2008 U.S. presidential election, 77.8% of eligible Minnesotans voted – the highest percentage of any U.S. state or territory – versus the national average of 61.7%. This was due in part to its same day voter registration laws; previously unregistered voters can register on election day, at their polls, with evidence of residency.
The 2008 Minnesota U.S. House of Representatives elections took place on November 4, 2008. All 8 congressional seats that make up the state's delegation were contested. Representatives were elected for two-year terms; those elected served in the 111th United States Congress from January 4, 2009 until January 3, 2011.
The 2008 Minnesota Democratic presidential caucuses took place on Super Tuesday, February 5, 2008 with 78 delegates at stake. The winner in each of Minnesota's eight congressional districts was awarded all of that district's delegates, totaling 47. Another 25 delegates were awarded to the statewide winner, Barack Obama. The 72 delegates represented Minnesota at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado. Sixteen other unpledged delegates, known as superdelegates, also attended the convention and cast their votes as well.
Ken Martin is an American political figure from Minnesota. He is currently Chairman of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party, President of the Association of State Democratic Committees, and a Vice Chair of the Democratic National Committee.
A general election was held in the U.S. state of Minnesota on November 4, 2014. All of Minnesota's executive officers were up for election as well as all the seats in the Minnesota House of Representatives, several state judicial seats, a United States Senate seat, all of Minnesota's eight seats in the United States House of Representatives, and several seats for local offices. A primary election was held on August 12, 2014, to nominate major political party candidates for partisan offices and candidates for nonpartisan offices.
The 2016 United States presidential election in Minnesota was held on Tuesday, November 8, 2016, as part of the 2016 United States presidential election in which all 50 states plus the District of Columbia participated. Minnesota voters chose electors to represent them in the Electoral College via a popular vote, pitting the Republican Party's nominee, businessman Donald Trump, and running mate Indiana Governor Mike Pence against Democratic Party nominee, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and her running mate Virginia Senator Tim Kaine. Minnesota has ten electoral votes in the Electoral College.
The Legal Marijuana Now Party (LMN) is a political third party in the United States. The party's platform includes abolishing the Drug Enforcement Administration and legalizing hemp and marijuana. As of 2024, the party has ballot access in Minnesota and Nebraska.
A general election was held in the U.S. state of Minnesota on November 6, 2018. All of Minnesota's executive officers were up for election as well as all the seats in the Minnesota House of Representatives, several judicial seats, two United States Senate seats, Minnesota's eight seats in the United States House of Representatives, and several seats for local offices. Special elections were also held for a Minnesota Senate seat and Minnesota's Class 2 U.S. Senate seat. A primary election to nominate Republican and Democratic–Farmer–Labor (DFL) candidates and several judicial and local primary elections were held on August 14, 2018.
Minnesota Legal Marijuana Now is a political third party in the U.S. state of Minnesota established in 1998 to oppose drug prohibition.
The 2022 Minnesota gubernatorial election took place on November 8, 2022, to elect the governor of Minnesota. Incumbent Democratic (DFL) Governor Tim Walz defeated the Republican nominee, former state senator Scott Jensen, winning a second term.
The 2020 Minnesota Senate election was held in the U.S. state of Minnesota on November 3, 2020, to elect members to the Senate of the 92nd Minnesota Legislature. A primary election was held in several districts on August 11, 2020. The election coincided with the election of the other house of the Legislature, the House of Representatives, and other elections.
The 2020 Minnesota House of Representatives election was held in the U.S. state of Minnesota on November 3, 2020, to elect members to the House of Representatives of the 92nd Minnesota Legislature. A primary election was held in several districts on August 11, 2020. The election coincided with the election of the other house of the Legislature, the Senate, and other elections.
The 2022 Minnesota Senate election was held in the U.S. state of Minnesota on November 8, 2022, to elect members of the Senate of the 93rd Minnesota Legislature. A primary election was held in several districts on August 9, 2022. The election coincided with the election of the other house of the Legislature, the Minnesota House of Representatives, and all other statewide elections.
The 2022 Minnesota Secretary of State election was held on November 8, 2022, to elect the Secretary of State of Minnesota. Incumbent DFLer Steve Simon won re-election to a third term.
A general election was held in the U.S. state of Minnesota on November 8, 2022. All of Minnesota's executive officers were up for election as well as all the seats in the Minnesota Senate and the Minnesota House of Representatives, several judicial seats, Minnesota's eight seats in the United States House of Representatives, and several seats for local offices. Primary elections to nominate major party candidates and several judicial and local primary elections were held on August 9, 2022.
| Recognized major parties | |
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| Recognized minor parties | |
| Other minor parties | |
| Historical parties | |
