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Election Day is a week away, and most voters are ready for it to be over. They’re also starting to wonder, after all the contests are decided, how can newly elected leaders move forward, when there is still so much division? The 2025 legislative majority in Minnesota — whether DFL, Republican or a mix of both — has a unique opportunity to lead and demonstrate that bipartisanship is possible.
We sit on the board of Majority in the Middle, a grassroots organization that advocates for less acrimony in politics. And as former legislators, we know that Minnesotans want the Legislature to work together. Yet arguments persist among party leaders and some voters that a one-party sweep of the agenda is the only way to get things done. Others believe split government is a recipe for gridlock.
A truly collaborative session is more about process than ideology. With a few procedural changes, agreement can be achieved — without anyone compromising deeply held values.
When all parties come to the table and participate in good faith, leadership can uncover the issues all caucuses can agree to and pull those things out as stand-alone bills. Issues that generate disagreement can still populate the omnibus bills that tend to pass on party-line votes. This way, the entire majority agenda can be accomplished while also passing more bills that have unanimous or overwhelmingly bipartisan support.
Individual members are already working across the aisle, so there should be plenty of issues to choose from. One of the ways Majority in the Middle encourages bipartisan work is by tracking bills and amplifying the results. Our 2024 State of Bipartisanship report showed that during the 2023-24 biennium, all but two of the 134 House members had sponsored or co-sponsored bills with members of both parties, and all 67 members of the Senate had sponsored and co-sponsored bills with members of both parties. Bills with bipartisan support exist, and with a shift in process, leadership can build on all that common ground.
Every legislative session is short by design. There’s a lot to accomplish, and restructuring bills this way might take a little extra effort. But, along with abiding by Minnesota’s single subject rule, this restructuring can demonstrate to the public that common ground exists, and their call for more bipartisanship is being heard.
