The rise of gun violence this year in Minnesota, and across the America, is prompting many to call for an assault weapons ban in the state.
That is starting at the top, where Governor Tim Walz wants the issue addressed in a special session of the legislature. But there appears to be little chance of passage because of the sharp divide in both the Minnesota House and Senate.
Maggie Emory of Protect Minnesota still feels lawmakers should still vote on the issue.
"Legislators should have to come, and sit down, and take this vote," she says. "And then go back to their constituents and explain why they voted the way that they did. I think our legislator's role is to let their constituents and voters know where they are in this issue, and I think we should take this vote."
Walz has yet to announce dates for a special session on gun violence. He has been floating the idea right after the Annunciation Church mass shooting that killed two children and wounded many more, and Walz has talked to several legislative leads in both parties.
There are 13 other states that already have this agency in place. Emory tells WCCO-TV it would make combatting gun violence more efficient.
"Someplace where all of the state's coordinated efforts to prevent and end gun violence can flow out of, because right now we're seeing that kind of the disparate efforts from groups like mine on the ground and various state agencies, they're not doing enough to prevent gun violence and the state needs to be doing more," says Emory.
It still appears Walz is working out the details. The political assassination of House Speaker emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband, and the Annunciation Church mass shooting that killed two children have spurred the governor, several city mayors across the metro, legislators and advocates to bring the issue back to the forefront. That, despite little buy-in from Republicans, and not passing a ban even when they held a DFL trifecta in the previous two years.
Republican State Representative Danny Nadeau of the northwest metro says the big challenge is the profound misperception of opposing sides on firearms.
"In Greater Minnesota, people have them on their hip," says Nadeau. "People hunt with them. They see people in orange. They see people sitting in deer stands. It's part of their way of life. But if you come to the metro and you see someone with a gun, it doesn't matter if they have a badge or not. There's this - there's something bad that's about to happen."
Nadeau was a guest on WCCO's Sunday Take with political analyst Blois Olson along with Democratic State Senator Judy Seeberger of the east metro.
"We have to be able to listen with an open mind, and we have to be able to listen with the viewpoint that the person who, maybe their views don't match your own, is still coming from a good place," Seeberger said. "And I try to approach every conversation that way, whether it's with members of my own caucus, whether it's with my friends and colleagues across the aisle."
Seeberger said that she's already talked to Republican colleagues about what their goals should be if a special session does get called.
"When we look at the math going into any special session that might occur, we really can't, I've been saying it all last session and I've been saying it in the context of a potential special session, we can't do anything without each other," she explains. "We're going to need to find common ground. We're going to need to work together."
A special election is scheduled for this Tuesday for Hortman's seat in the House, expected to stay blue in a heavily Democratic district in Brooklyn Park. That likely means the Minnesota House is back in a 67-67 tie which means anything that passes has to be bipartisan. That's difficult with any issue right now, and especially difficult when it comes to a polarizing issue like gun laws.
Nadeau says those contrasting opinions will make it difficult to reach a consensus.
"It's gonna have to be, you know, broader, greater Minnesota and metro," he said. "It's gonna have to be Senate and House, and it's gonna be very difficult, I think, to try to do that in a special session."
Also lingering over the issue is Walz himself. He has yet to announce his intentions to run for a third term, although there are signals that he is leaning that way. It's expected he will make a final decision early this week, and part of what is apparently driving him to seek an unprecedented third consecutive term is office is the unfinished work around this issue.
"We have got to do something to make our streets safer, our schools safer, and do some common sense things," said Walz last Wednesday afternoon. "And so I think that's a big driving piece."
Walz is scheduled to meet with legislative leaders about the special session again on Monday. Olson says the Walz announcement on running for another term complicates things for the governor.
"He was really bullish on that, but, you know, with the backdrop of running again and then a special session, let's just say that you can campaign or you can try to negotiate and moderate, and you might not be able to do both at the same time," says Olson who believes the governor will make an announcement later this week via video.