Minnesota 2014 Election Results

Minnesota held its general election on November 4, 2014, deciding 134 legislative seats and 5 statewide offices led by the governorship. Control shifted: the House moved from a 73-61 Democratic majority to a 72-62 Republican majority. The Senate was not up for regular election this cycle.

Highlights

• Minnesota moved from two years of single-party control by the Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party to divided government. Gov. Mark Dayton (D) won a second term and the DFL kept its Senate majority, while House Republicans picked their leader, Kurt Daudt (R), to be speaker in place of Speaker Paul Thissen (D), whom House DFLers kept as their leader in the minority.
• Republicans flipped 11 House seats, all from DFL incumbents, and made most of their gains in rural and outstate districts, more than offsetting a weaker suburban showing. Daudt campaigned against higher taxes and spending, the troubles at MNsure (the state's health insurance exchange), and a $90 million Senate office building. Three DFL incumbents lost by fewer than 250 votes:
  • Jim Knoblach (R) beat Zach Dorholt (D) by 69 votes in House District 14B in St. Cloud, one of the areas where outside spending in a single House race topped $500,000.
  • Dave Baker (R) beat Mary Sawatzky (D) by about 210 votes in House District 17B.
  • Brian Daniels (R) beat Patti Fritz (D) by about 220 votes in House District 24B.
• Dayton beat Jeff Johnson (R), a Hennepin County commissioner, by about 6 points. Dayton ran on his record, including the minimum-wage increase, same-sex marriage, and higher income taxes on top earners, while Johnson promised spending cuts without saying what he would cut.
• The DFL swept the other statewide offices. Steve Simon (D) beat Dan Severson (R) by about 1 point for secretary of state, keeping the office in DFL hands after Mark Ritchie (D) did not seek re-election; Simon had chaired the House elections committee. Lori Swanson (D) was re-elected attorney general by about 14 points, Rebecca Otto (D) was re-elected auditor by about 12, and Tina Smith (D) became lieutenant governor on Dayton's ticket.
• Beyond the flips, DFL incumbents held all 4 other House races that finished within two points: Yvonne Selcer (D) kept House District 48A by 41 votes over Kirk Stensrud (R) after a recount, Barb Yarusso (D) held House District 42A by about 220, and Peter Fischer (D) held House District 43A by about 250.

Legislature

• House (134 seats): 73 D, 61 R before the election, 62 D, 72 R after; control moved from Democrats to Republicans.
• Senate (67 seats): 39 D, 28 R before the election, 39 D, 28 R after; control stayed with Democrats.

Statewide races

Legislative races